


Here is the Light

by TerraCody



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Black Eagles Route Spoilers, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Blue Lions/Golden Deer Joint Route, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Church Route Spoilers, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Golden Deer Route Spoilers, Headcanon, Post-Timeskip | War Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-05
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:21:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 28,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27456409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TerraCody/pseuds/TerraCody
Summary: While Dimitri and Byleth march on Enbarr, Claude takes the former students of Golden Deer to launch an attack on Shambhala to stop a threat to the whole world.
Relationships: Balthazar von Adalbrecht | Balthus von Albrecht/Constance von Nuvelle, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/My Unit | Byleth, Ferdinand von Aegir/Marianne von Edmund, Flayn/Dedue Molinaro, Hapi/Raphael Kirsten, Hilda Valentine Goneril/Claude von Riegan, Linhardt von Hevring/Lysithea von Ordelia, Lorenz Hellman Gloucester/Leonie Pinelli, Petra Macneary/Ignatz Victor
Comments: 5
Kudos: 18





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Fire Emblem: Three Houses and its characters are the property of Intelligent Systems, Koei Tecmo, and Nintendo. As you’ve seen from the tags on all my stories, this fan fiction universe is a joint Blue Lions/Golden Deer route, but with obvious favoritism towards Azure Moon than Verdant Wind. I’ve always headcanoned that Chapters 21 and 22 of Azure Moon, Chapter 20 of Silver Snow, and Chapter 21 of Verdant Wind occur at the same time. I don’t know if I could write about the march on Enbarr, especially since in my headcanon Byleth uses every Divine Pulse during the battle with Edelgard (so a LOT of resets) but I’ve always wanted to write about the taking of Shambhala. So, here it is.
> 
> And...yeah. I don’t like Crimson Flower. Sorry. But anyways, I hope you enjoy.

_30th of the Verdant Rain Moon, Imperial Year 1186_

The desperate pounding on her door jolted Byleth awake. She sat straight up in bed and noted the darkness in the room. The sun had not risen yet. The knocking had not ceased. She quickly crawled over the chair, careful to not disturb the plates and tea set on the table still set out, and hurried to the door. When she opened it, the full moon illuminated the figure standing just outside. Byleth’s mouth hung open in shock as shockwaves shook her body. She could not even form the name on her lips before the figure surged forward, gently grabbing her shoulders and leaning her forehead against Byleth’s heart.

_What...Rhea?!_

”Is this...Is this a dream? I have longed to see you again....all this time...Is it truly you?”

Byleth stammered and babbled, staring down at the emerald head. “R...Rhea?” She reached up and touched her shoulders with trembling hands. “W—How—” she looked up, and her eyes further widened at the person who was climbing up the steps directly in front of her door. “W... _Claude_?!”

”Hey, Teach,” Claude von Riegan greeted her, leaning casually against her doorframe. “Fancy meeting you here.” He looked inside her room and saw the table with the white tablecloth. He smiled wider. “Looks like you had a fancy date last night, eh?”

”Claude,” Byleth said, finally able to steady her voice. She looked between Rhea and him. “W...What’s going on? H-How...” she focused on Rhea. “A-Are you all right? You should lay down.”

Rhea shook her head against her chest. “I am well. I rested on the trip here. Th—There is no time for me to rest. There is too much that needs to...”

”I’m afraid she has a point,” Claude said, his tone turning serious. “We’re a bit short on time and we have a _lot_ that we need to discuss. Hilda went to wake Dimitri up, so they should be here any—ah.” He smiled again as he looked over his shoulder. “There they are.”

Byleth let Rhea lean on her and helped to guide her out of the room. In the moonlight she saw Hilda Valentine Goneril running towards them waving her arm, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd running behind her and—Ferdinand von Aegir? Byleth felt the twinge of guilt again when she saw Dimitri, but it quickly passed as they reached them. “We’re here!” Hilda greeted as she ran up the step. “Long time no see, Professor!” She was no longer wearing a sling on her arm, and her energy made Byleth feel relieved. _She seems to have made a full recovery. Claude, too._

”I-Is everything a— _Lady Rhea_?!” Dimitri shouted when he got close enough to them. His blue eye was wide. “W—How?!”

”Lady Rhea, you’re alive!” Ferdinand also shouted when he reached them. He quickly looked between Hilda and Claude. “When I heard Dimitri and you in the hallway, I didn’t expect you were here because of this!”

”Okay, let’s go grab Seteth and find a place to talk,” Claude said, straightening his posture. “There’s something that all of you need to know about.”

The door next to Byleth’s room burst open and Dedue Molinaro raced outside, still in his pajamas but wielding his axe. “You Highness! I’m h—” he stopped dead in his tracks and did a double take at the sight before him. His stoic expression did not change other than the widening of his eyes. “Ah...Lady Rhea has been rescued?”

”You’re welcome,” Claude said, his tone now hurried. “I’m sorry to rush everything, but this is important and we need to talk _now_.”

* * *

The group gathered in the empty Knight’s Hall after waking up Seteth and Flayn. Rhea went to get Seteth herself while Byleth got Flayn. Both were completely shocked to see Rhea again and were quick to follow them. Byleth saw Manuela Casagranda following them, and she was surprised to see her up so early. As they left the Faculty dormitories, Catherine materialized from the darkness still in her nightclothes. She was stunned when she saw that Rhea was there, and didn’t even bother going back to her room to get changed as they headed for the Knight’s Hall.

Rhea took a seat in front of the fireplace as Claude, Dimitri, and Byleth stood in front of her. Everyone else scattered around the room. “Please, tell us what’s going on,” Dimitri said. “How were you able to get Lady Rhea back?”

”Oh, it was easy,” Claude said, tucking his arms behind his head. “The Almyran soldiers and I dressed ourselves as Imperial soldiers and snuck into the palace. Hilda disguised herself as Edelgard, and the palace soldiers took us right to Rhea.”

”Apparently my impression of Edelgard was pretty keen,” Hilda said, rubbing at her forehead with the back of her hand. “The guards didn’t suspect a thing, even though I was wearing a bad wig and my eye color is different than hers.”

”So...So that’s it, right?” Manuela said, her tone helpful. “The war is over. We rescued Lady Rhea.”

”It cannot be as simple as that,” Ferdinand said, shaking his head. “Once Edelgard realizes Lady Rhea is gone—if she does not know already—then she will send the Imperial Army straight here.”

”I agree,” Dimitri said, nodding. “With Lady Rhea rescued I am uneasy about the siege on Enbarr. But we are now in a position where we have to march on Enbarr as a preemptive strike before Edelgard leads the Imperial Army to Garreg Mach again.”

”That’s correct,” Claude said, nodding. “And...we have more bad news. Rhea?” He glanced towards her.

Rhea’s eyes were closed and she were hugging her arms. “I...have lost some of my life.”

”Rhea?!” Seteth’s eyes went wide and he sat down beside her.

”Oh no, Rhea!” Flayn cried out, wringing her hands. “Please do not tell us that you are dying!”

”W-What do you mean, you’ve lost some of your life?” Catherine asked quietly. Her face was pale as she slowly sat down on Rhea’s other side.

”I have been tortured and drained for the last five years,” Rhea explained. “Continuous, horrifying pain. But—I have learned a lot in these five years.” She lifted her head up, her expression somber. “The Imperial government...has been overtaken by descendants of Agartha.”

” _What_?!” Seteth shouted. Flayn wailed in horror and slapped both hands over her mouth. She had burst into tears, but Dedue was at her side putting an arm around her shoulders.

”I...do not understand,” Ferdinand said, swallowing thickly.

”Every horrible event in the history of Fódlan...every horrible event that has occurred even before the start of this war...can be traced to the Agarthans.” Rhea closed her eyes. “The rebellion of the Western Church. The Tragedy of Duscur. The assassination of the previous Duke of the Alliance. All of these events are linked to this group of people.”

“The Agarthans,” Dimitri breathed softly, his eye wide. “They are the people who turned against the Goddess, are they not? The teachings of Seiros say became greedy, thought themselves better than the Goddess, and they tried to overtake her. The Goddess struck them down.”

”That she did,” Seteth said grimly. “But it was not the end of them.”

”They came,” Flayn said quietly, dropping her hands from her face. Her eyes and face were red from sobbing and Dedue kept his arm around her. “It was an ambush. Screams filled the air. It smelled of smoke and blood. Blood flowed like rivers, staining the valley...” she began shaking, and her eyes rolled back as she collapsed against Dedue. 

”Flayn?!” Seteth leapt from the couch and almost wrenched her from away from Dedue. He cupped Flayn’s face as her eyes fluttered. “Flayn, I am here! Please stay with me!”

“I...” Byleth frantically looked between Rhea, Seteth, Flayn, and Dimitri and Claude. “This—This sounds like a grand conspiracy of sorts.”

“That is because it is,” Rhea said. “This is not a new phenomenon. The Agarthans have steadily and patiently infiltrated the Adrestian Empire over the course of many years, and in doing so they have influence over the monarchs. They have influence over the academia of the Empire. They...” she whimpered softly.

”I don’t mean to interrupt, but we _are_ short on time,” Hilda said, moving to stand beside Claude. “Lady Rhea, Claude and I already know everything. If speaking about this is difficult for you, then w—”

”No, it is okay.” Rhea shook her head and clasped her hands together in her lap. She met Byleth’s gaze. “I will tell you...everything.”

”Rhea, is that wise?” Seteth asked fearfully as he guided Flayn to the couch. Dedue hovered nearby. “W...We have gone to such great lengths to protect ourselves.”

Rhea looked at him. “I understand and I am sorry. But if they are to help us, they must know.”

Seteth stared at her in silence for a long time, and his eyes swept across the room to the people standing around them. His eyes landed on Byleth last and he finally sighed shakily. He quickly walked away towards the doors of the Knights Hall and slammed them shut so hard that Byleth couldn’t help but flinch. Then he returned to the group. “...All right,” he said. “There are some here that already know some truths. But I need a guarantee that everything discussed in this room will not leave this room.”

”Seteth—” Byleth said.

”Promise me!” Seteth snapped, his expression hardening as he looked around the room again. “My family has suffered _greatly_ for eons, and I have guarded these secrets to keep us safe! I want you all to promise me that everything revealed here will not be a threat to my family!”

”I—do not know what is going on,” Dimitri said, raising his hands slightly. “But as I am going to be King, I swear on my life that I will not do anything that would bring harm to you.”

”I...already know things about you,” Byleth said, looking between Seteth and Rhea. “You can trust me with anything.”

”I will be silent,” Dedue promised.

”Who would I tell about this anyway?” Manuela scoffed, shaking her head.

”I will do anything to keep you safe, Lady Rhea,” Catherine promised.

“I—know I have the most to prove when it comes to trustworthiness,” Ferdinand said softly. “But I have not had ties to the Empire since my family fell from grace. Edelgard had her reasons for what she did, but she took my family and my life away from me. I would not betray you for her. My faith in the Church is stronger than my faith in the Empire.”

”Well, I’m always good at keeping secrets,” Claude said, shrugging. “And Rhea already told Hilda and me so we’re all set.”

”Yup,” Hilda said around a yawn.

Rhea nodded stiffly and held out her hand to Seteth. After a few moments Seteth took her hand. “All right,” he conceded. “I will place my faith in all of you. And in you, Lady Rhea.”

Rhea squeezed his hand weakly before letting it go. “Very well. I will tell you all everything that I know. And everything that I gleaned during my five years in captivity.”

Rhea spoke in a soft voice, without interruption, for almost an hour. The people in the room stared at her in stunned, horrified silence with each revelation she gave them about the true history of Fódlan...and the true history of the Church. Byleth herself was stunned, but when she glanced at Dimitri she saw that his complexion was almost translucent. Concerned, she grabbed his hand and squeezed it reassuringly. Dimitri did not look at her but she saw him flinch slightly, and then squeeze her hand back.

It was Dimitri who spoke first when Rhea was finished. “A...Am I understanding this correctly?” He asked in a quiet, small voice. “L-Lady Rhea. You...You are the legendary _Seiros_?!”

“That is correct,” Rhea confirmed.

“Y-You are a Nabatean—one of the Children of the Goddess?!”

”I am Sothis’s last surviving daughter.”

“I don’t believe it,” Catherine breathed softy. Her expression was a mixture of awe and stricken. Her eyes darted between Rhea, Seteth, and Flayn. “A-And Seteth. Flayn and you—you are father and daughter and not brother and sister?”

”It is true,” Flayn whispered. Dedue pressed a handkerchief into her hand. “The reason they wanted my blood five years ago is the same reason they massacred my people a thousand years ago; they want to steal my power. Cethleann’s power.”

”You are Saint Cethleann,” Ferdinand breathed, his eyes wide. He quickly looked at Seteth. “A-And you are Saint Cichol?!”

Seteth nodded reluctantly. “I am.”

Byleth noticed that neither Dedue nor Manuela looked surprised by these revelations. She looked at Dimitri, but his eyes were on Dedue. “Dedue,” he said suddenly. “D...Did you know the truth about Fl—Cethleann?”

”...I did, You Highness,” Dedue admitted, adverting his eyes.

”P-Please do not be angry with him!” Flayn pleaded, jumping to her feet. “I begged him not to tell you! It is a secret I forced him to keep! It is wholly my fault that Dedue did not tell you this!”

Dimitri stared at her for a long moment before he slowly shook his head. “I am not angry. You are in a relationship with Dedue. It is only natural that you two would share things with each other that you would not share with anyone else.”

Dedue’s eyes widened and he stood up as well. “Your Highness,” he said. “You are most forgiving and understanding to—”

“Dedue,” Dimitri gently interrupted him. “It is fine. You have a life outside of serving me. I am happy that you have this life. You did not withhold information that would hurt me, or be treasonous. You were protecting your partner. I understand that.”

Dedue nodded slowly, his eyes reddening slightly as he saluted his prince. “Thank you, Your Highness.”

”Yes, thank you Dimitri,” Flayn said, bowing repeatedly.

”That was awfully generous of you, Dimitri,” Claude said teasingly.

Dimitri scoffed and gave Claude a look. “What that meant as an insult or compliment?”

”Maybe a little bit of both?”

“Claude,” Byleth said softly.

”What?”

“But you had also mentioned something else,” Dimitri said, looking back to Rhea. “The 10 Elites—my ancestor—they were not allies of the Goddess? They were Her _enemy_?”

”Yes,” Seteth said, answering for Rhea. “The 10 Elites sided with the King of Liberation and participated in the massacre of Zanado. They struck down the Nabateans—the Children of the Goddess—and then struck down the Goddess Herself.”

”So—our Crests are not a blessing,” Ferdinand stated. His words were not a question. “It was stolen power from the Children of the Goddess. And Edelgard and the Agarthans tried to steal again five years ago when they kidnapped Flayn, and attempted to raid the Holy Tomb.”

”A-And—the Heroes Relics,” Catherine interjected. “They are not a blessing from Sothis either?”

”They are not,” Rhea murmured. After a moment she took Catherine’s hand. “The Heroes Relics are body parts of the Children.”

” _What_?!” The cry echoed in the room from multiple voices.

”So m-my Areadbhar.” Dimitri almost said it in a whimper. He looked at Claude and Hilda. “Your Failnaught. A-And your Freikugel, Hilda. Felix’s Aegis Shield. The Lance of Ruin. Lúin. And t-the others—they are _bones_?!”

”My Thunderbrand,” Catherine whispered, her eyes wide with horror as she looked at Rhea. “W-We have been using weapons that were created from Sothis’s _murdered_ _children_?!”

“Yes,” Rhea confirmed.

”T-That defies _everything_ that is taught by the Church!” Manuela cried out, pressing a hand to her throat. “Because Crests are c-coveted, it has created a caste system! You understand that, don’t you?! People who wield Crests have always been treated better than the Crestless! How could the Church _reward_ those who wield Crests when they _committed genocide_ to gain these “blessings”?!”

”Because it was the only way to protect us,” Seteth said feelingly. He left Flayn’s side to stand before Manuela. Dedue took the opportunity to move closer to Flayn. “If humans knew that Crest power could just be _taken_ whenever they wanted, then they would just continue stealing it! The Nabateans are close to extinction! The King of Liberation and the 10 Elites nearly wiped out our entire race! We had no choice but to promote the idea that it was a blessing and not stolen power! If people thought that it was just a blessing from the Goddess, then they would not think to kill more of us for their own gain!”

“The King of Liberation,” Ferdinand muttered. He shook his head. “I remember that Edelgard’s family always held him in the highest regard, despite the fact that he was on the opposing side of history.”

”That is because Edelgard believes that the Goddess—and by extension Nabateans—are evil incarnate.”

Everyone looked at Rhea again. Her complexion was becoming paler, and she seemed to sway where she sat. Catherine put an arm around her to steady her in her seat, and Seteth quickly sat beside her. “In my captivity...they called me the Immaculate One. Everything wrong that has gone on in the history of Fódlan—everything that the _Agarthans_ have done—the Empire and the Emperor have blame on _me_. Have blamed on my mother. Edelgard, she...” Rhea closed her eyes. “I—I told her the truth. About everything. And she didn’t believe me. She has been taught a reversed history. The Crests, the Heroes Relics? She believes that _we_ stole them from humans. She believes that Nemesis was named the King of Liberation because he was trying to “liberate” mankind from the control of the Goddess. All of her motivations for this war have been based upon these false beliefs.”

”But Nemesis was not called the King of Liberation for that reason,” Seteth said softly. He covered his eyes with his hand. “He was called the King of Liberation...because he killed so many people in his crusade that his acts of atrocity could only be described as “liberating” people’s souls from their bodies.”

”S-Something happened to Edelgard!” Ferdinand said suddenly, stepping forward. He turned to Byleth and bowed. “I am most ashamed for keeping this from you! I-I...Five years ago, my father accidentally sent me a letter that was meant for Count Vestra, Hubert’s father. In the letter, he...” a strangled noise erupted from his throat but he forced himself to continue. “I...I don’t know what exactly he did, but Edelgard’s siblings were murdered for some reason. Whatever happened to them, happened to Edelgard. She just happened to survive it.”

”Her hair,” Dimitri said, his eye widening as he looked at Byleth. “Her hair was not always silver. W-When I last saw her when we were children, she had brown hair.”

”Edelgard has two Crests,” Rhea murmured. Claude sucked in a sharp breath, and Byleth looked at him as a cold chill swept through her body. _Two Crests? Edelgard has two Crests...like Lysithea?!_

Rhea continued. “She has a Minor Crest of Seiros...and the Crest of Flames.”

”The Crest of Seiros, and...T-The Crest of Flames?” Byleth said softly, looking back to her. “I have the Crest of Flames, and the Crest of Seiros...”

”The Crest of Seiros has naturally been passed down through the ages through House Hresvelg. It is _my_ Crest power.” She paused before continuing. “Jeralt also had the Crest of Seiros.”

Byleth sucked in a sharp breath and exhaled sharply. “I...I knew that my father had a Crest, but he tried not to utilize it in battle. H-He didn’t want to bring attention towards himself. D—Does that mean that Father, he...was he related to Edelgard?”

“No. He received the Crest of Seiros directly from me.”

”Now _that_ sounds interesting,” Claude said before Byleth could say anything. “Crest power can be stolen, and voluntarily given?”

”That is correct.” Rhea looked at Byleth. “Your father was mortally wounded protecting me in battle. I gave him my blood to save his life, and in doing so he inherited my Crest. In doing so I saved his life...and expanded his lifespan.”

”E-Expanded his...” Byleth’s voice trailed off and she looked towards the ceiling. “A...Alois said something about how he looked the same. He—” she looked back at Rhea. “Father had forgotten his age. How old was he before he...?”

Rhea’s reply was quick and blunt. “I saved his life one hundred and twenty years ago.”

”O-One...” Byleth couldn’t finish the word and her mouth hung open. A stunned silence had also swept through the room as everyone stared between Byleth and Rhea. 

_So...Father was over a hundred years old when I was born. But he wasn’t immortal. He died when Kronya stabbed him. Rhea—Seiros’s blood could not protect him from another mortal wound. And my Divine Pulse could not stop his death._

”Given the information that we know about Edelgard,” Ferdinand said suddenly. “I am going to assume that she did not steal second Crest for herself. Nor was it given to her with a transfusion of blood.”

Rhea nodded. “From what I was able to learn, Edelgard was born with the Crest of Seiros as to be expected fromsomeone of House Hresvelg. The Crest of Flames, however...it was imprinted on her through magic. By the Agarthans.”

”Wait, hold on a moment,” Manuela said sharply, waving her hand. “Edelgard and her family suffered under the _Agarthans_?!”

”And other nobles of the Adrestian Empire. That is what I heard from whispers, and from Hubert.”

”But _why_?! Why are they her allies then?! Why did she declare war on the Church—and by extension the rest of Fódlan?! Why is she fighting people who had _nothing_ to do with what happened to her?!”

”I...am quite perturbed by this,” Ferdinand said quietly. “My father had a hand in her suffering, and she punished him for it. But she allowed the Agarthans to enter Garreg Mach. They committed atrocities here, wore dead people’s faces. Tomas, Monica, Lord Arundel...” he looked at Dimitri. “Y...You told her the truth of that, did you not?”

”We did,” Dimitri said grimly. “I do not know if she believed me—that her uncle was not actually by her side after all this time—but she was not sad that he was dead.”

”They were not alone.”

Everyone jumped violently at this new voice, and Seteth’s face hardened as they all turned towards the newcomer. Hapi slowly approached them wearing her usually calm and serene expression, though her hands were clasped tight together. “It was something I suspected, when we took Fhirdiad,” she said. “I had felt the preculiarity after everything we had already experienced, but when we met Thales in Derdriu that’s when I knew for certain.” Her gaze shifted towards Dimitri and Byleth. “Cornelia. The woman who experimented on me. She was the same as Thales.”

” _W-What_?!” Dimitri cried out, his jaw hanging open.

”I had never really thought about it because she was the only one of...those people that I initially knew,” Hapi said, shrugging. “Unlike the others she did not reveal her true face, so I wasn’t sure that I was right. But her presence had felt...similar to Solon, and Kronya, and Thales. I do not believe that the person we met in Fhirdiad was the real Cornelia. I believe that now.”

”...Now I get it,” Dimitri breathed, his shoulders drooping slightly. “After Cornelia saved Faerghus, there were rumors that she had a complete change in personality overnight. And...And she hadn’t physically aged in decades. I-It—” he looked at Byleth. “That the same with Kronya, was it not? She wore the same physical appearance as Monica the day she disappeared. Now it all makes sense. “Cornelia”—no, that _witch—_ did not have a change in physical appearance, like Monica, because it was just an illusion! A false face she was wearing! She...” he snapped his teeth together. “That monster...she poisoned my stepmother against my father! She murdered my uncle! She—” he gasped loudly and whipped around to look at Dedue. “These people infiltrated the Empire. If the false Cornelia was an Agarthan, that means the Agarthans infiltrated the Kingdom’s government, and—the Tragedy of Duscur! I-Is _that_ what you meant, Lady Rhea?! T-That was caused by these people?!”

Rhea nodded. “As I said...they are responsible for everything bad that has occurred in the history of Fódlan. But Edelgard and Hubert—and many others—blame myself, blame my mother, and blame the Church of Seiros for _their_ crimes.”

”Edelgard blames the Crest system though, does she not?” Manuela asked. “That _was_ started by the Church.”

”But humans would not have had the Crests to begin with had they not stolen them,” Flayn said quietly. “The Crests are of the power of our people. The Heroes Relics were crafted from their bodies. The Crest Stones...are the hearts of those slain to be turned into weapons.”

”And Edelgard believes that _we_ had those first,” Ferdinand said quietly. “And that Sothis, and the Children of the Goddess, stole them from us humans.”

”I do not understand how she can possibly believe all of this though,” Catherine said heatedly. “Lady Rhea’s explanation for the origins of the Heroes Relics is plausible. What explanation was Edelgard given?”

“Her axe. Aymr was its name. It is not a Heroes Relic, but a weapon crafted by the Agarthans. It is a replica of a Heroes Relic. The Agarthans more than likely gave her this weapon as “proof” that Mother stole from the humans.”

”I heard a rumor,” Claude added suddenly. “When we infiltrated the castle in Enbarr. Those Who Slither in the Dark are creating a replica for the Sword of the Creator. It’s wh—”

”’Those Who Slither in the Dark’?” Byleth echoed, interrupting him. Claude shrugged. “They are the Agarthans, but some of the Imperial soldiers said that’s what Hubert calls them.”

”It is what he calls them,” Rhea confirmed. “I heard him refer to them as such in my presence. He hates them...but sees them as necessary allies because he also believes in their lies.”

”I am not surprised that Hubert hates them,” Ferdinand muttered. “They hurt Edelgard, and he loves Edelgard. But if Edelgard sees them as a necessary evil to her plans, Hubert would likewise see them as such.”

“It’s quite ironic, isn’t it?” Hapi said, slowly shaking her head. “How they talk of liberating people from the tyranny of the Church. How they want to create a better world for everyone. Yet _they_ bring the tyranny. _They_ bring the suffering.”

”There is one thing though that I don’t understand,” Hilda spoke up, folding her arms over her chest. “Lady Rhea, you had said that the Goddess was killed at the Red Canyon. The Children of the Goddess were slaughtered at Zanado and their bones fashioned into weapons. So...where is Sothis?”

Rhea was silent again for a long moment. Then she lifted her finger—and pointed to Byleth. Everyone immediately looked at Byleth, who gaped at Rhea in shock. “W...What?”

”T-The Professor?” Manuela breathed, her eyes wide. “S... _She_ is the Goddess?!”

”The Sublime Creator Sword,” Rhea said. “That is my mother. The Agarthans created the sword from Her remains, and Nemesis used Her as his weapon in his conquest. And Her Crest Stone...Mother’s heart...” tears spilled down her cheeks as she looked at Byleth. “Her heart...is inside your chest. That is how you have been able to use the sword without its Crest Stone.”

Byleth’s hand flew to her chest, pressing over her heart. Dimitri looked at her for a long moment before looking back at Rhea. “W...How is that possible?!”

”I am so sorry,” Rhea said mournfully, choking softly on her sobs. “I just—You could never understand the depths of loss I felt. How—How _horrible_ it was to lose my mother in such a vile fashion. To ha...that She was murdered, and Her murderer turned Her into a sword and wielded Her like She was some kind of _trophy_. Mother was everything. Sh...” she ducked her head forward and hugged her arms with her hands. “I...I wanted Her back! I wanted Mother back so _much_! I-I tried everything that I could to get Her back! I c-created vessels to summon Her spirit back! B-But no matter what I did; no matter how many times I tried, She would not come back!”

Byleth felt tears sting her eyes. She was light-headed; her vision blurred. She swayed very slightly on her feet, but she felt an arm slide around her shoulders. “I am here,” Dimitri murmured against her hair.

She didn’t have the strength to take comfort from his presence. “I...” she was so emotional that her words slurred. “Is...Is that all that I am?! Just a _vessel_ with the only purpose to house the Goddess’s spirit?!”

” _No_!” Rhea cried out, jumping to her feet. “You were _never_ a vessel! You were not created for that purpose! You—You were a product of _love_!” She wrung her hands for emphasis. “Byleth, I—it was your mother! Sitri! _She_ was supposed to be Her vessel! She was the twelfth being I created to be my mother’s vessel! But i-it didn’t work but...” she shook her head violently. “I loved her. I loved Sitri. Your mother, she—you must understand how wonderful she was! I could not bring Mother back, but Sitri was wonderful and perfect, and...” she shook her head again. “Jeralt loved her. When I found out about their relationship I was happy that she was happy. But...”

”...You once told me that my mother gave me my heart to save my life,” Byleth said quietly. “Sothis’s heart.”

”Yes...Mother’s heart. When Sitri gave birth to you, it was a stillbirth. Sitri begged me to save your life, and told me to take Mother’s heart and put it in your chest. Jeralt, he...he never knew the truth about Sitri. He didn’t know that she was created to be a vessel, and that she had the heart of Sothis inside her chest. He was...afraid of me. Rightfully so,” she added softly.

Byleth’s hand curled into a fist against her heart. “You say that I was never a vessel,” she said, anger rising in her voice. “But after I—the day Edelgard and the Imperial Army invaded the Holy Tomb. What was supposed to happen when I sat on Sothis’s throne?”

Rhea shrugged stiffly. “If everything had gone according to plan, then Mother would have taken over your body. She...She would have overrode your conscious, and taken your body as Hers. Mother would have returned to me—and you would have ceased to be, Byleth.”

Nausea settled over Byleth quickly, and she slammed her eyes shut to steady herself. _Sothis...She was supposed to take me over! W-We weren’t meant to merge, but she would’ve replaced my soul inside my body! I-If we hadn’t become one beforehand...I wouldn’t be here now! I-Is THIS why my father told me to watch out for Lady Rhea?! He may not have known the truth, b-but did he know that she planned on doing this to me?!_

”You were going to summon the Goddess and _kill_ the Professor?!” Dimitri’s shout startled Byleth before she could speak. Her eyes flew open and she looked at him. His body went rigid, his face reddening in anger. “You tricked us into going into the Holy Tomb to put your mother in her body?! You were going to erase the Professor in front of _us_?! In front of **_me_**?!” 

Despite her own anger, Byleth gently grabbed his arm. “Dimitri—”

”Your Highness—” Dedue began.

”Do not shout at Lady Rhea!” Catherine snapped, jumping to her feet and stepping in front of Rhea.

“I understand what you went through.” Dimitri wasn’t looking at Byleth. His teeth were clenched as he spoke to Rhea. “I understand how awful it is to lose a parent. If I could bring my father back, I—” he shook his head violently. “But you would do that to Professor Byleth?! Someone who trusted you?! Who did _everything_ you asked of her?! I don’t care if you are Lady Rhea or Seiros, you had _no right_ to do that! The Professor is her own person! She is _not_ your mother!”

”Dimitri,” Byleth said again. She swallowed thickly to steady her voice. “Relax, please.”

Dimitri looked at her. “Professor—”

”It didn’t work. I’m still here.” Byleth reached up and cupped his cheek. “I’m still me.”

Dimitri was silent for a long moment as he stared at her. He reached up and caressed a few strands of hair between his fingers. He met her gaze again. “This—when Solon sent you away, and you cut the sky open, you came back with your hair and eye color changed. D-Did...?”

Byleth’s breath hitched, but she could not and did not want to lie to him. She swallowed hard before she spoke. “...Yes. Sothis, She—She saved me. By merging with me.”

A stunned silence swept through the room once more, broken again by Rhea. “I do not have the right, but I must ask for your forgiveness Byleth. I have spent the last thousand years trying desperately to bring my mother back, and to protect the last Nabateans who are left. Mother—She was a real Goddess. She did descend from the Heavens. While core aspects of the teachings of Seiros may have covered up a horrible truth, She was and is real. I-I wanted Her back, but I...” Byleth looked at her saw that she had sat down again. “I...I accept that I cannot have Her back. I accept that you are a person, and that I had no right to use you as a pawn in my plans. I accept responsibility for the chaos that has come about from a system that was created to prevent more bloodshed. It wasn’t my intention, I...”

”We just wanted to live,” Seteth said solemnly. “We wanted to live in peace and not live in fear of suffering the same fate as our brothers and sisters. We didn’t want the mistakes of the past to repeat themselves.”

”But unfortunately, the mistakes of the past are repeating themselves anyway,” Claude suddenly interjected. He moved to stand in front of Byleth and Dimitri. “We don’t have a lot of time. The Agathans—Those Who Slither in the Dark—they’re planning something.”

”’Something’?” Byleth and Dimitri said in unison.

Claude nodded. “A large number of mages have gathered in Enbarr, but an even greater number have gathered in House Goneril territory. Hilda?”

”Right.” Hilda reached into a satchel and quickly unrolled old parchment. Byleth realized that it was a map of Fódlan, and she pressed a finger to the eastern part of Fódlan in the former Leicester Alliance. “Here. We found out that these creeps have a hideout in my family’s territory. There’s a city underground here called _Shambhala_. They have a certain someone buried here, and Those Who Slither are going to take all of the nasty tricks they’ve learned—I’m sure the face-stealing and experiments helped them get to this point—to bring someone back to life.”

”W—They’re trying to _resurrect the dead_?!” Dimitri sputtered.

”Nemesis,” Rhea said grimly.

” _No_!” Flayn cried out, pressing her hands to her cheeks. Her eyes and mouth went wide in horror. “T...They can’t do that!”

”Oh, but they’re going to try,” Claude said, looking around the room. “We found out they’re planning this to coincide with your invasion of Enbarr. Whilst you take out Edelgard and bring an end to the war... _they’re_ going to resurrect the King of Liberation. Edelgard—either willingly or unwittingly, probably the latter—is just their bait to trap you all in the same place. I imagine that they hope to resurrect this guy just in time for your to take Enbarr, and then sic him on Enbarr. Look here.” Claude pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Byleth. “I mentioned this before but I also, ah, procured this for myself. That looks familiar, does it not?”

Byleth opened the paper and saw a drawing of a sword, surrounded by notes and pointed arrows to different parts of the sword. She looked at Claude. “This...This looks like the Sublime Creator Sword.”

”Yeah,” Claude agreed. “Just like with Edelgard’s axe, they’ve created a replica weapon just for Nemesis. And if their replica has even a _fraction_ of the power of the real sword...”

”T-This is unbelievable!” Catherine cried out, standing up. “T-They—Was this war nothing more than a _distraction_ for them to summon the King of Liberation?!”

”This is horrible,” Ferdinand breathed. “They...Edelgard thinks she is fighting her own revolution, but she is serving as their faithful pawn right up until the end...”

”It doesn’t matter that they’re using Edelgard,” Hilda said sharply. “She’s not a naive child. She made her choice. Countless people are dead because of her. She knows how bad Those Who Slither in the Dark are, but she threw her lot _with_ them and not against them. She lost the ability to be pitied the minute she started a war that tore three countries apart.”

”Geez Hilda, why don’t you tell us how you really feel?” Claude teased her. But Hilda scoffed and shook her head. “You know I’ve never liked her, Khalid.”

”’Khalid’?” Byleth echoed.

”Oops,” Hilda said, covering her mouth.

”Oh, right, we never got to that.” Claude patted Hilda on the shoulder reassuringly and gestured to himself. “Claude’s not my real name. My name is actually Khalid. I’m the future King of Almyra. Did you enjoy the chocolate I sent?”

”Almyra?!” Catherine snapped.

”You came fro—” Seteth also hollered.

” _You_ sent the chocolate!” Flayn squealed. She rushed forward and grabbed Claude’s hand. “Oh, what a wonderful delicacy! I have never tasted a sweet so delicious in my life!”

”Chocolate is a little too sweet for me, but I thought it would lift your spirits before your battle,” Claude.

”That was thoughtful of you,” Hapi said. “I ate six slices of the chocolate cake last night.”

”Oh yes, the chocolate was _perfect_ in cake!” Flayn agreed. “It was not appealing topped over Teutates Loach, but baked inside a cake was wonderful!”

”You guys put chocolate on top of _Teutates Loach_?” Claude asked, his expression aghast. “Why would you do that?”

”We’re getting off-topic again,” Dimitri interjected, waving a hand. “So, you are the Prince of Almyra Clau—Khal—”

”Claude is fine.”

”And so we have two threats; Edelgard in Enbarr, and Nemesis in Shambhala. As much as Edelgard needs to be stopped, it sounds like though that Nemesis is a far greater threat than Edelgard.”

”If Nemesis comes back, he will crusade again,” Rhea said numbly. “He will kill anyone who is in his way.”

“So this is what we’re going to do,” Claude said, looking at Dimitri and Byleth. “Rhea and I will go to Shambhala. We’ll stop these people—Those Who Slither in the Dark, while you two go to Enbarr and stop Edelgard.”

”Look, forget Enbarr for now!” Dimitri said, waving his hand. “Stopping the resurrection of Nemesis should be our top priority! All of us should march to Shambhala!”

”You need to stop Edelgard!” Claude snapped at him, pointing his finger for emphasis. “She may not like these people, but we both know that she or Hubert could have taken _any_ opportunity to ask us either of us for help when we were in the Academy! Instead, she has treated these people as her allies and declared war on _us_! Us! She tried to assassinate us, people who never did her harm! She started a war that tore apart three countries because of her vendetta against the Church, and countless innocent people have died in the crossfire! I wish to the Gods that we didn’t have to bring her downfall, but Teach and you have already tried to reason with her and she will not stop! So you _must_ stop her!”

”...I know,” Dimitri said quietly. He closed his eye briefly before opening. “I know what must be done. B...But the threat of Nemesis is greater than Edelgard.”

”It is,” Rhea said. “But as Claude said, the forces of the Agarthans have been divided. Some are at Enbarr and some are at Shambhala. We must stop them while their forces are divided. That means attacking both locations where they are at.”

“Consider this a favor,” Claude told Dimitri. “You lead your allied forces from the Kingdom, Empire, and Alliance as a unified front into Enbarr. I will take my classmates from the Golden Deer, and some Church soldiers, and attack Shambhala in secret. I’ll let you take the glory in this Dimitri, because you need to show all three countries that you are worthy of leading a fully unified Fódlan. I’ll work in the shadows to stop Nemesis.”

Dimitri gaped at him for a long moment in silence. He looked at Byleth, but she also did not know what to say. He looked back at Claude. “Y...You would do that for me? For Fódlan?”

”Oh, don’t misunderstand me. There’s strings attached to my proposal.”

”Such as?”

”My dream.” Claude spread his arms. “Fódlan needs to open itself to the world. As the future King of a fully unified Fódlan, it is up to you to open Fódlan to Almyra, and the world. I get rid of Nemesis for you, and let you take all the glory for ending this war. _You_ in return will crush Fódlan’s Throat and open Fódlan‘s borders to Almyra.”

”Open...crush Fódlan’s Throat?” Dimitri looked at Hilda. “Your family’s soldiers are stationed at Fódlan’s Locket. Are you okay with...?”

”Of course I am,” Hilda said, shrugging. “Holst doesn’t mind, either.”

Dimitri looked at Claude. “Fódlan’s Locket exists because Almyrans keep invading Fódlan’s Throat. Would I have your guarantee that these attacks will stop?”

”Oh, absolutely,” Claude said, nodding. “Many of those same people saved Rhea. They’ll stop or I’ll make them stop.”

Dimitri was silent again before he nodded again. “Once we both become king...I would be happy to have relations with Almyra.”

”Great!” Claude grabbed his hand and shook it. “A pleasure doing business with you, Your Highness! Oh, and I have one more favor.”

”Favor?”

Claude let go of his hand and grabbed Hilda’s hand. “We intend on getting married once I ascend the throne.”

“Oh, congratulations!” Byleth burst out, quickly grabbing both of their hands.

“Thanks, Teach. But Almyran royalty marrying a noblewoman from Fódlan again is going to cause some controversy in both of our countries. But, if we have the blessing from the King of Faerghus for our union, then that should quell the controversy.”

”So you would like me to attend your wedding?” Dimitri asked him.

”Oh, absolutely. But it would also be nice if you give a public statement supporting our marriage. The last thing I want is for problems to come to either of our families...or our future children.”

”Future chi...” Dimitri quickly looked at Hilda but she shook her head. “No, I’m not pregnant silly.”

“So those are my conditions,” Claude said. “I’ll let you be the hero of this war, and in return you open Fódlan’s borders and support my marriage. Sounds pretty reasonable, eh?”

”I’m coming with you,” Seteth said suddenly. Byleth looked at him and saw that his expression was hard. “I want to help stop Nemesis.”

”I’m coming too,” Hapi said. “I owe these people for what they did to me.”

”I—” Flayn began.

“No Flayn,” Seteth interrupted her. “Do not worry about this. Go with the Professor and march on Enbarr.”

”But I—”

”The last time we took on Nemesis I almost lost you forever. I will _not_ let that happen again! Please, stay with Professor Byleth, and—” his voice cut off as he looked at Dedue.

”I will protect her,” Dedue said with conviction. Flayn looked between them, her eyes brimming with tears again. Finally she nodded. “I...I understand.”

”I won’t leave your side, Lady Rhea,” Catherine said. “I’ll go with you to stop Nemesis.”

”Are we in agreement then?” Dimitri asked, looking around the room. “Claude and Lady Rhea will take former Golden Deer students and Church soldiers to march on Shambhala. The Professor and I will take former Blue Lions students, former Black Eagles students, other Church soldiers, and combined armies from all three countries to march on Enbarr. Goddess willing, our simultaneous attacks will stop both threats.”

“I’ll go to Enbarr,” Manuela said, though her face was strained. “I—I’m a citizen of the Empire. I need to be part of that march.”

”I will obviously go to Enbarr as well,” Ferdinand said, nodding. He hesitated for a moment before continuing. “Ah...you will be taking Marianne then with you to Shambhala?”

”Of course I am,” Claude said. “Is that a problem?”

”A-Ah, no...”

Hilda looked at him peculiarly, but Byleth spoke up before she said anything. “Then we know what we must do. Let’s hurry and get this taken care of.”

* * *

Once the alumni of Golden Deer (and Linhardt von Hevring) had gotten ready and arrived in the Greenhouse, Claude gave his former classmates a very quick synopses of the earlier conversation with Rhea, whilst leaving out details that he had sworn to secrecy to. He was met by stunned and horrified expressions, but he didn’t pause in his explanation.

”So that’s what’s going on,” he finished. “Dimitri and Teach are still marching on Enbarr to stop Edelgard. We’re going east to this underground city called Shambhala to stop the Agarthans.”

”B...But do we _have_ to march on Enbarr?” Lysithea von Ordelia sputtered softly, wringing her hands slightly. “If these people are the ones who have been behind all the chaos, then the Empire should join us in stopping them!”

”Unfortunately that’s impossible. Rhea herself admitted to us that neither Edelgard nor Hubert like these people, but they see them as a necessary evil. From their perspective, the Church of Seiros is the problem and so crushing the Church and its allies is their goal. They cooperate with the Agarthans because they have a common enemy. And because of manipulation,” Claude muttered bitterly.

”So in order for this war to end once and for all, and for peace to be restored to Fódlan, both the Empire and the Agarthans need to be dealt with,” Lorenz Hellman Gloucester said quietly. “And they need to be dealt with simultaneously.”

”I’m ready to go!” Raphael Kirsten shouted, punching his fists together. “I’m coming for you Nemesis!”

”Glad to see this pleases you,” Hapi said.

”W-We should be careful,” Marianne von Edmund murmured quietly, wringing her hands. “If they are trying to resurrect a dead person, then—then we are going to be facing very powerful foes.”

”I’m looking forward to it,” Leonie Pinelli said confidently.

”These people have done horrible things,” Ignatz Victor agreed. “We need to stop them as soon as possible.”

”This is all very intriguing,” Linhardt said softy. “I would like to join you all on your quest.”

”Wait, you _don’t_ want to join your classmates to march on Enbarr?” Hilda asked.

Linhardt shrugged. “I’m not exactly enthused about participating in a campaign that will bring the downfall of my home country. Your mission sounds more interesting.”

”More int...” Lysithea shook her head at him. “Is that what matters to you?”

”Is that a problem?”

“We need to get going,” Claude said, waving a hand. “Lady Rhea, Seteth, and some Church soldiers are waiting at the outskirts of Garreg Mach because they don’t want to cause a commotion by announcing Rhea’s presence. It’ll take a few hours to get to Shambhala, and we don’t know exactly we’ll be facing, so we’ll need to move quickly and be prepared for the worst.”

The group agreed. Ignatz was closest to the doors of the Greenhouse and opened the doors. He started slightly as he saw Ferdinand standing there. “Ah—”

”Oh, are you joining us after all?” Claude called out to him as they headed for the doors.

Ferdinand shook his hand and looked at Marianne. “May I speak with you?”

”O-Of course,” Marianne said, blushing.

Hilda suddenly screamed, startling both Claude and Lorenz (who were standing closest to her). She frantically pointed at Ferdinand with both hands. “I-It’s you! _You_ proposed to Marianne, Ferdinand!”

Ferdinand immediately blushed, and Marianne blushed even harder. “I—”

”Wow, it sounds like yesterday was a wild night!” Claude laughed loudly. “Marianne got engaged, Ingrid got engaged, Ignatz got Petra pregnant—”

” _Claude_!” Ignatz cried out, looking horrified.

”Wait, Petra is pregnant?!” Ferdinand sputtered.

”That was awfully irresponsible of you,” Linhardt said dully.

”Ignatz, I took you for being a more cautious person than bedding a princess and getting her pregnant!” Lorenz scolded. 

”You’re one to talk Lorenz,” Hilda said slyly. Lorenz also blushed, as did Leonie.

”A-Ah, um...” Ferdinand didn’t say anything more. He just grabbed Marianne’s hand and hurried off with her.

”Don’t be too long!” Claude called after them. He grinned at his fellow classmates, who were in varying stages of embarrassment, incredulity, and horror. “I’ve missed you guys...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, that was a crazy chapter to write. Sooooooo much exposition, lol.


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I accidentally posted this chapter before it was finished. I removed it as soon as I realized my mistake and I apologize for the confusion.
> 
> Ugh, so I couldn’t even keep my promise from my own comment. But here it is after a long delay. The past three months have been terrible, but the good news is that I’ve finally started to feel better and not worse. Thank you for you patience, and with any luck I will hopefully get back to 100% health so that I can start churning out stories at the same frequency as before.

Claude was glad for the opportunity to leave, as in the aftermath of his group chat he had to witness Petra Macneary arguing with both Byleth and Dimitri about whether or not she should be allowed to march on Enbarr in her “condition”. With Ignatz feebly arguing that she probably wasn’t actually pregnant, and Petra insisting that her pregnancy should not interfere with her ability to fight. Claude was fairly certain he heard her argue the point that “female Brigid warriors fight while pregnant all the time”.

Being the dependable leader that he was, Claude was more than happy to “save” Ignatz and drag him off with the rest of the Golden Deer. Petra seemed to be doing enough of the arguing on her own without his help anyway.

Marianne returned alone, though her face was flushed and her eyes shimmering. Her uncharacteristic and deliriously happy expression was both startling and delightful to Claude, though he noticed that she swayed slightly on her feet where she stood. _I’m unused to seeing her like this, but I’m glad to see her so happy. For all his ego I know I can trust Ferdinand at least to keep her happy. His pride probably wouldn’t allow anything less._ He chuckled at the thought.

Hapi said goodbye to her fellow Ashen Wolves. Claude saw Constance von Nuvelle (face completely shadowed) give her a long hug, but Balthus von Albrecht had a strained look on his face. He seemed to be having some sort of internal conflict, and Yuri Leclerc pulled him aside. They spoke briefly, and while Claude didn’t say anything he was feeling a little impatient. _We need to get going before Those Who Slither can act..._

Yuri and Balthus finished talking, and both Hapi and Constance nodded. Balthus then grabbed Constance and kissed her on the mouth before waving...and following Hapi towards them.

_Ah. Balthus is joining us then. Well, the more the merrier. His Vajra-Mushti should definitely come in handy._

”Baltie!” Hilda called out cheerfully, waving. “You’re coming with us?”

”You bet I am!” Balthus shouted, punching his knuckles together. “Let’s go and pound these skin-walkers into oblivion!”

_Skin-walkers? Well, they do have a habit of wearing other people’s faces._

“Will Holst be joining us?” Balthus asked eagerly.

”No,” Hilda said regrettably. “We were going to send him a message, but then we realized that we wouldn’t have enough time to go and pick him up before Those Who Slither realize our plans.”

Balthus’s shoulders slumped in disappointment. “Aw, damn...”

”Don’t feel too disappointed,” Claude told him. “Judith isn’t even marching with us. I told her to take her soldiers and march with Dimitri and Teach to reinforce their united front against the empire.”

”Don’t be too upset B,” Hapi told him. “You seem to have a lot of reason to be happy last night.”

Balthus looked up and grinned toothily. “That I do.”

”Ooh, what happened last night?” Hilda cooed to him.

”B got engaged,” Hapi supplied.

” _Engaged_?!” Hilda shrieked. “ _You_ , Baltie?!”

”What on earth is it with everyone suddenly deciding to get married or hop into bed with each other?” Lysithea scoffed, shaking her head as she folded her arms over her chest.

”Yeah, and in _my_ case it was both!” Balthus roared with laughter.

“Don’t let Coco hear you say that,” Hapi muttered.

”Hey, _she_ agreed to brag about my prowess in bed!”

”How uncouth,” Lorenz huffed to himself.

“Hey, don’t forget how Hilda and I found you this morning,” Claude interjected with sadistic glee.

Lorenz immediately stiffened, but Leonie jumped in. “Claude—”

”Hey, I’m not shaming either of you. Anyone can tell by the ring on your finger how much you mean to Lorenz.” Leonie stiffened as well and immediately covered her left hand.

”Everyone’s lost their minds,” Lysithea scoffed.

”Perhaps knowing that today may very well be the end of our lives inspired people to give in to their desires?” Linhardt offered.

“That’s one way of putting it,” Claude said. He turned to his Golden Deer alumni. “Are we ready to go then?”

”Wait!” Claude looked over his shoulder and saw Cyril flying towards them on his wyvern Siegbert. He had a look of determination on his face. “They said Lady Rhea is back...I want to help her!”

”Aww, how cute of you to still look out for Lady Rhea!” Hilda cooed at him.

Claude shrugged. “Sounds good to me. Let’s not waste anymore time and get going.”

He led the group of his former classmates towards the gates of Garreg Mach. The Monastery was still rushing to get ready for the march on Enbarr, and Claude just nodded to soldiers who recognized him. _With any luck, we can end this war and save the world by dusk._

“Are you sure you don’t want to apply?”

Claude looked over his shoulder when he heard Lysithea’s voice, but he saw that she was talking to Linhardt. Linhardt shrugged to her question. “I see no need to. I’ve excelled as a Dark Bishop, and the Professor is always very complementary of my skills.”

“But a Dark Bishop is only an Advanced Class,” Lysithea pointed out. “I know the Professor has at least one Dark Seal left, so you could easily take the exam to promote to Master Class and become a Dark Knight.”

”But we already have two Dark Knights. Lorenz is a Dark Knight. Professor Hanneman is a Dark Knight. Wouldn’t I just be copying them? I’m the only Dark Bishop in this army currently.”

”But the Dark Knight is more powerful than a Dark Bishop!”

”So be it. I still don’t see the need to become one.”

”But that is just so—urgh!” Lysithea growled in frustration.

 _Wow, Lysithea’s badgering of Linhardt seems different from how she badgers other people,_ Claude thought amusedly, smiling as he turned back around. _I can’t wait to tease her for this._

When they left the Monastery and descended the hill, a collective gasp overtook the former students as they approached Catherine, Seteth and his battalion of Cichol Wyvern Co. riders. Claude steered Gideon towards Seteth and quickly saw why his comrades gasped. 

Rhea was sitting sidesaddle behind Seteth on his wyvern Whitasu, the Seiros Shield affixed to her left arm.

”Lady Rhea!” Cyril shrieked. He flew towards her but stopped Siegbert abruptly so that it didn’t collide with Whitasu. “Lady Rhea, you’re alive! Are you okay?!”

”I am well,” Rhea said, but Claude saw that her complexion was still pale. “And I will be better once we complete this task.”

_”Heal.”_

A glow suddenly surrounded Rhea, startling everyone around her and immediately setting Seteth off. “Who did that?!”

”I can’t even earn your praise from healing Lady Rhea? You continue to remain a man impossible to please.”

Claude turned and saw Professor Manuela slowly sauntering towards them, dressed in well-fitted Gremory outfit and casually twirling her Healing Staff with one hand. “I know that it is minimal, but I hope that helps you Lady Rhea.”

”I am grateful to you,” Rhea responded, nodding.

”Will you be joining us after all, Professor Manuela?” Claude asked her, but she shook her head. “No, I’m still marching to Enbarr with Dimitri and the Professor. But I wanted to see you all one last time anyways.” She sobered quickly and looked towards Seteth and Rhea. “You all be careful, okay? It would be most disheartening to hear that you were defeated when we are successful.”

”Your faith in us is awe-inspiring,” Seteth said sarcastically, and Claude’s brow rose at his unusual tone. He gripped Whitasu’s reins in both fists but Claude noticed Seteth’s frown soften...a bit. “Just do well to guard your own life, Manuela.”

Manuela smiled at him. “I always do.” Then she turned to walk back towards Garreg Mach.

_Hmm. That was an...interesting interaction between Seteth and Professor Manuela. But then again, I’m fairly certain Lady Rhea found them together in Seteth’s room this morning._

“Let’s hurry and get this done,” Catherine said, tightening her sword belt around her waist.

”Hey, that’s my line!” Claude teased, turning his attention back to the group. As they readied themselves Linhardt abruptly walked up to Rhea and raised his hand. “ _Heal._ ”

Claude’s eyes widened as a healing glowing brighter and exuding more power than even Professor Manuela’s healing spell surrounded Rhea. Her eyes widened as she looked at Linhardt. Seteth also turned around in his saddle to face Linhardt. “W-Where did you get that power?! _I_ just felt the effects of that spell!”

Linhardt shrugged lazily. “It might be an after-effect of magic I experimented with last night.”

Claude noticed that Lysithea had a stunned expression on her face and he was immediately curious, but he shook his head to clear it. _My questions can wait. We need to leave._

* * *

While Dimitri and Byleth led their forces marching south, Claude and Seteth led the Golden Deer and a few Church soldiers east into Goneril territory to invade Shambhala. Though they did not know what they would be facing, they knew what their mission was. Stop Those Who Slither in the Dark. Stop the resurrection of Nemesis.

 _I can’t let an old crone like the King of Liberation destroy the world_ , Claude thought to himself. _But with any luck we’ll get there before they can resurrect him._

”Man, I love this!” Raphael hollered, marching enthusiastically in his War Master armor. “This is just like old times; marching into battle with the Golden Deer! Man, how I’ve missed this!”

”Why did you join the Blue Lions, Fae, if fighting with the Golden Deer means so much to you?” Hapi asked him.

”Because that lucky dastard got to grapple with Teach,” Claude said over his shoulder. “What’s more, Teach defeated him!”

”She didn’t just grapple with me!” Raphael agreed, his eyes shining as he grinned widely. “Professor Byleth grappled with me in _heavy armor_! She wore so many layers of armor that I thought she was copying Dedue! But man, even with all that armor she was stronger than me! She got on top of me and pinned me with her knees on my shoulders!”

”That’s an interesting image,” Linhardt said blandly, causing Lysithea to blush. 

“Everyone at the Training Grounds thought so,” Raphael said. He suddenly laughed loudly. “Oh man—I’m remembering the look on Dimitri’s face when the Professor bested me! The way his eyes looked like they were gonna bulge from his head! He looked so shocked and it was so funny!”

”I bet he was shocked,” Claude muttered, and Hilda snorted before coughing loudly.

”Catching a cold, Hilda?” Catherine asked her dully.

“No, I’m fine. Why was the Professor wearing heavy armor though?” Hilda wondered out loud. “I’ve never seen her wear heavy armor to battle.”

”I-If I recall, she had taken the exam for Armored Knight and passed,” Ignatz said. “I’m assuming that she was just trying a new skill set out, because she switched back to the Mercenary class not long after that.”

”Yeah, it was quite infuriating how easily she took to those classes,” Leonie said, though her tone was light.

”So Professor Byleth straddled and pinned my body underneath hers,” Raphael said with complete nonchalance, causing more people to blush at his unintentional innuendo. “And then she treated me to a meal! We ate a _crazy_ amount of meat! How could I not help but feel inspired by a woman who not only bested me in sparring, but then totally outclassed me in eating?! I just _had_ to join her when she offered!”

 _I guess housing the spirit of a real Goddess will give you incredible strength and a healthy appetite_ , Claude thought to himself. Out loud he said, “I certainly couldn’t argue with that logic when you presented it to me, Raphael.”

”Simple and to the point, like me,” Balthus laughed. “I joined the Blue Lions just because Professor Byleth asked me to!”

”As did I,” Hapi agreed blandly. “As did all of us Ashen Wolves, if I recall correctly.”

”Yeah, it seemed like the right thing to do at the time, right? Like, I only had two conversations with the Professor, but I felt like I _owed_ her or something! Isn’t that weird?”

”...I was the same,” Hapi said with a note of surprise in her voice. “I had this—feeling that I owed her a favor, and that I could trust her, so when she asked me I just agreed.”

”So all four of you Ashen Wolves agreed to be recruited by Professor Byleth without a second thought?” Claude asked, genuinely amazed. “Wow. I think I’m jealous at how magnetizing Teach is!” _But, she DID fuse with a Goddess after all. It’s no wonder she was able to scoop up everyone, even though Hilda showed resistance..._

”Need I remind all of you that we are on a serious mission and not a picnic?” Seteth snapped, turning in his saddle to glare at everyone.

”Yeesh Seteth, you’re as uptight as you were when we were students,” Hilda scoffed.

”Excuse me?!”

”Seteth,” Rhea said quietly behind him. “Please do not lose your temper with someone who worked so hard to save my life.”

”I...all right,” Seteth conceded.

”That’s right,” Hilda said smugly.

”Yeah, especially since Hilda doesn’t really work hard at anything,” Claude added teasingly.

”Excuse me?!” Hilda gasped, echoing Seteth’s own words as she she glared at Claude. “I am more than capable of putting forth effort!”

”I know,” Claude said, grinning at her. Hilda relaxed slightly at hearing that.

”Putting forth effort? Hilda?” Cyril asked in genuine confusion. “Since when?”

”You’re oh so nosy as usual, Cyril,” Hilda teased him.

”Ask again when you’re older,” Claude added.

”Older?! I’m twenty years old!”

”...Maybe it was a good idea Holst didn’t join us,” Balthus muttered to himself.

“Did you really get Petra pregnant, Ignatz?” Leonie asked him suddenly.

Igantz quickly blushed and averted his eyes. “I...um...I...don’t know.”

”I thought not. But you proposed to her, yes? That would be the appropriate thing to do.”

”O-Of course I did...”

“So much for not treating this like a picnic, right?” Lysithea huffed to Marianne. Marianne blushed and also looked away. “I...ah...”

”Do we have a general idea of the foes we will be taking on?” Lorenz steered Jakob close to Claude. “They seem to be proficient in dark magic. They can take on the physical appearance of dead people, and when we liberated Fhirdiad we saw—unusual monsters there.”

”That’s right,” Hapi agreed. “They were like giant mechanical dolls and they were very powerful. We should probably expect to see much of the same in Shambhala.”

”If that’s the case, then you should summon monsters to take those guys down!” Balthus offered, but Hapi shook her head. “I don’t think I need to remind you that I cannot control the monsters I summon, B.”

”Have you tried screaming at them back?” Raphael asked eagerly.

”I haven’t yet tried to voluntarily summon them.”

”How far until we reach the entrance to Shambhala?” Catherine asked, her eyes looking to Rhea.

Hilda fumbled with the map, and after staring at it for a moment she pointed ahead. “There should be a plateau ahead of us. We’ll find the entrance just down the center.”

”Then let’s be ready for a fight,” Claude said, quickly becoming serious. “Everyone, get your weapons out. We don’t know what we’ll be facing, so let’s not get ourselves killed by being reckless. Do you understand, Lorenz?”

”Excuse me?” Lorenz sputtered, glaring at him. “What exactly is that supposed to mean?!”

Claude shrugged. “I figured you needed an extra warning since you tend to not listen the first time I give you orders.”

”Why, I never—”

”Everyone.”

The group fell silent, and though they kept moving everyone was looking at Rhea. Her head was dipped forward and she was not looking at anyone. “I must ask your forgiveness for burdening you with this mission. More so as I cannot join the battle with you. Edelgard took my Sword of Seiros when I was captured, and we were not able to get it back when I was rescued. But even if I had the sword, I do not have the strength to offer much assistance. I appreciate all of you being here with me all the same.”

”Of course we will help you,” Cyril told her eagerly. “You’re Lady Rhea!”

”And we would not ask you to fight with us after the ordeal you suffered anyways,” Seteth told her.

”Hey, we’re doing this as much for ourselves as we are for you,” Claude added. “If Those Who Slither in the Dark get their way, not only is Fódlan going to suffer but so will the entire world. This is bigger than just a squabble over territory or beliefs. These people need to be stopped, and we’re going to stop them.”

Rhea nodded stiffly. She lifted her head then and smiled at Claude. “I am...grateful for what you are doing. However...there is something else we need to be careful of.”

“‘Something else’?”

”Yes. I...I remembered an event. Once, a very long time ago, a massive ball of light fell upon Garreg Mach. However, that light mysteriously changed course in mid-air and landed in Ailell instead.”

”I remember that as well,” Seteth said grimly. “It was beams of light in the shape of spears—or javelins.”

”Javelins of light?” Claude asked quizzically. “We...haven’t seen anything like that since the onset of the war, right?”

”We have not, and it was most likely because we killed Thales in Derdriu. It seems that he was acting as the leader of Those Who Slither. Had he been alive we may have seen these javelins before.” Seteth frowned deeply. “They may have used it on Fort Merceus had Thales been alive, considering how many of our forces were gathered there...”

”Ailell, the Valley of Torment...” Leonie said thoughtfully. After a moment her eyes widened with realization. “Then—Then what to that terrain wasn’t vengeance from the Goddess?”

“No. It was an attack from the Agarthans on us that was diverted,” Rhea said.

”So that's what the wreckage of those javelins of light looks like.” Leonie looked uncomfortable.

”U-Um,” Marianne said softly, and blushed as everyone turned towards her. “I-I...if Those Who Slither can use a weapon like that...does this mean they may fire it at Enbarr?”

Hilda quickly looked at Claude in horror. “That’s a good point. Their forces are divided, but they could fire this weapon at Enbarr once Edelgard is defeated.”

”I thought the same,” Claude said, gripping Gideon’s reins. “It’s a good thing then that we acted preemptively. Let’s pick up the pace before they can cause any further destruction. We don’t want Teach, Dimitri, and their forces to be in any greater danger. Oh, and your betroths,” he casually threw over his shoulder. He smirked when he heard a few noises of embarrassment behind him.

The group surged ahead, but Linhardt deliberately kept back at a slower pace with Lysithea. “You’ve been uncharacteristically quiet during this trip,” he mentioned. “Normally you would scolding the whole lot of them more fiercely for not taking this situation seriously.”

”...Shambhala,” Lysithea said softly, her brow furrowed. “That is the home of the people who...who hurt me.”

”I know. I don’t like killing, but I won’t lose sleep over this battle, and the lives we’ll be taking.”

”Hapi said that those mechanical dolls we faced in Fhirdiad would be down there. If—If those things are down there, then...then their secrets...the secrets of what they did to me...”

”That is what I think too,” Linhardt said. He couldn’t suppress the hope in his tone. “I will do what I can to assist in the battle—but I will not lie and say that stopping this Nemesis is my priority.”

Lyisthea’s head snapped up and she looked at him with wide eyes. “You—Are you _seriously_ telling me that finding out how to remove my Crests is more important to you than stopping these monsters?!”

Linhardt shrugged nonchalantly. “Like I said, I’m not going to lie about my motives.”

”You can’t just abandon the battle for this!” Lysithea hissed furiously at him. “We need you!”

”Lysithea, our group has very capable healers in both Lady Rhea and Marianne. The abundant healing magic I gave her earlier should keep her well for the time being. What’s more, they have proficient spell-casters in both Hapi and you. If I had a boost in magic from our failure last night, then _your_ boost will be phenomenal. I will help as much as I can, but none of you will miss me.”

”Why would you do something so selfish, when the entire world is at stake?!”

Linhardt glanced at her with a dull expression. “I thought I made it clear to you last night.”

Lysithea turned crimson, but said nothing more as they followed the group.

* * *

There were no forces guarding the open gate to Shambhala, which surprised Claude and made him suspicious. Balthus, Raphael, and Cyril rushed to the front to serve as the vanguard with their battalions as they cautiously entered the cavern’s mouth and descended a slope into the cave. Claude could sense Gideon’s apprehension as they moved deeper, and he rubbed his wyvern’s neck reassuringly as he readied an arrow against Failnaught. The tunnel was darkened at first, lit only by the glow of Heroes Relics and Sacred Weapons, but just ahead they saw blue-green lights. The stony and dirt floor then abruptly changed to a—a metallic shiny floor that glowed in light. Claude kept the outward appearance of calm, but his heart was pounding in his throat. He did not see one Agarthan during their advance, which did not reassure him.

_How many of them went to Enbarr, and how many of them are here trying to resurrect Nemesis? No, stay calm. Everything will be fine. We do not know the layout of this city, but that will not stop us from being successful. Kronya is dead. Solon is dead. Thales is dead. The person who wore Cornelia’s face is dead. Those individuals must have had great power amongst their ranks, so we are already at a point of advantage when we’ve crippled their chain of command. Of course, this also means that they will be desperate, but that doesn’t matter. We’re going to win._

No one said a word; breaths were unsteady but everyone kept moving forward without pause. After several minutes of walking Claude saw an opening in the tunnel ahead. They still did not see anyone ahead of them. Claude whistled softly, and the vanguard stopped ahead. Everyone else stopped behind him, though he sensed Hilda fly up to his right and Seteth and Rhea fly up to his left. He looked around his companions. His friends. They were all rightfully on edge but they looked ready. Then he looked at Hilda, and she smiled back at him confidently whilst hoisting up Freikugel. Claude smiled back, and signaled to everyone to carefully advance.

They reached the opening, and the sight before them caused them all to stop dead in their tracks and gasp in shock. Shambhala was a city pulsing in energy. They were on a ledge overlooking the expansive underground city, brightly alit as though it were daytime with eclectically shaped buildings. Claude looked towards the ceiling and was amazed to see a black void. He did not know how far they were underground, but Shambhala had been molded in a such a way that it gave the illusion of an outdoor city in eternal twilight. 

“Incredible...” Lysithea breathed, staring upwards as well. “Who knew that there was such a vast space beneath the ground...It’s like an ancient ruin...But not just because of its appearance.”

”Hmm,” Linhardt said, also looking around. “The atmosphere here is very different from the Holy Mausoleum or Holy Tomb. Look at the shapes and the light...”

“I don’t recall ever seeing architecture like this,” Ignatz said warily.

”It is magnificent in a sense, but I could hardly call it beautiful,” Lorenz said grimly. “Even the air feels stagnant.”

”In any case, it seems like we need to go deeper,” Claude said calmly, looking at everyone. “Let’s look around and see if we can find some stairs.”

”I agree,” Seteth said. “Let us search for a way to descend farther still. We should survey our surroundings carefully.”

”We should avoid charging as a single group,” Hilda suggested. “This is a city, so cities are bound to have more than one entrance to them. We should split up our forces then and attack in separate groups.”

”Good idea,” Claude said. He looked out over the city again. “This place seems to be square-shaped, so what we might want to do is form four groups and attack from each of the corners and work our way in.” He frowned as he squinted towards the city center. “Does anyone else see that building in the center of the city?”

”Yes,” Hapi said. “And it’s quite heavily guarded. I wonder if that is where they are keeping Nemesis?”

”All right!” Balthus yelled, punching his knuckles together. The Vajra-Mushti smacked together loudly.

“Shh!” Everyone hissed at him.

”I—Lady Rhea?” Seteth asked suddenly as she slid out of Whitasu’s saddle.

”Are you okay?” Catherine quickly asked her. “If you are still feeling ill, then maybe you should—”

”No,” Rhea said calmly. “It is simply...” she shook her head. “We must defeat Those Who Slither in the Dark, no matter what happens.”

”Well, that’s what we intend to do,” Leonie said confidently.

”How should we divide our forces?” Cyril asked.

”There are fifteen of us, not including our battalions,” Lorenz pointed out. “With four groups that will mean three groups would have four leading units, and the other one group would have three.”

”I will lead one group,” Claude decided. He squinted over the city. “I’ll come in from the northwest.” 

“I will advance from the southeast and lead the group from that position,” Seteth said, pointing in that direction.

“I must insist on leading a group,” Lorenz interjected. “Allow me to take the southwest position.”

”Please and thank you,” Claude said, grinning at Lorenz’s scowl. He turned to Hilda. “Okay Hilda, that means you’ll lead the group from the northeast.”

” _What_?!” Hilda snapped, glaring at him. “Why do _I_ have to lead a group?!”

”Considering this part of your training to become Queen.”

Hilda flushed at this statement, but sighed dramatically and nodded. “All right, fine.” She swiftly flew over to Marianne and linked her arm with hers. “I choose Marianne for my group.”

”A-Ah, okay,” Marianne said meekly.

”And Lysithea.” Hilda quickly grabbed Lysithea with her other arm.

”Hey, wait a minute!” Lysithea snapped, trying to pull her arm free. “I want to choose my own group!”

Claude raised his hand. “I actually wanted—”

”I’ll join Hilda’s team,” Linhardt said blandly, quickly moving to stand beside Lysithea. Lysithea’s further protests died in her throat.

Claude dropped his arm and sighed in disappointment. _I wanted Lysithea on **my** team. But I should’ve realized Hilda would move quicker than me. _

“I would’ve like to join your group Hilda,” Balthus said, pretending to pout.

“You can join my group then,” Claude offered. Then he turned to smile at Cyril. “So Cyril, wanna join my group as well?”

”I want to stay with Lady Rhea,” Cyril said bluntly.

”Ah, would you like to join my group Lady Rhea?” Claude asked her.

Rhea shook her head. “I...would like to stay with Seteth.”

”Then _I_ choose Seteth’s group,” Catherine quickly chimed in.

“Me too!” Cyril chimed in.

Claude sighed again. “I’m feeling unwanted,” he complained. “But I will make the personal sacrifice and be the lone group with three people.”

”...Are you certain Claude?” Lorenz asked him.

”Of course. But in doing so I’ll choose the last person for my group.” He quickly pointed. “Leonie.”

”Eh?” Leonie asked, pointing to herself. “Y...You want _me_?”

”Sure I do. You trained with Jeralt, and you’re proficient with lances and bows. I couldn’t ask for a better ally on my team.”

”Claude, that is most unfair to rob me of the right to pick my own group!” Lorenz said sharply.

”Hey, I’m doing you both a favor,” Claude said, shrugging. “If you’re both not on the same team then your judgment won’t be clouded by your feelings.” They both stiffened at hearing that.

”A-All right, so then I am in Lorenz’s group,” Ignatz said, nodding.

”As am I,” Hapi said blandly.

”Me too!” Raphael laughed. “Man, we’re already the best group here!”

“They’ve noticed our presence,” Lysithea said suddenly in alarm. Indeed, there was a loud commotion in the city below them.

”Then there’s no use delaying the inevitable,” Claude said, nodding to his comrades. “Let’s commence with the invasion. All of you take care of yourselves and don’t you dare die.”

Hilda flew over to him and though she didn’t kiss him she still leaned in close. “You’re not allowed to die either,” she murmured to him.

Claude grinned at her. “I love you, too.” She immediately blushed at his blunt statement, but her eyes shined and gave him a beautiful smile.

”All right, let’s go,” Leonie sighed, hoisting up The Inexhaustible. She started slightly when a hand grabbed her wrist, but she relaxed when she saw Lorenz at her side. “I know,” she said before he could speak. “I’ll be careful. You be careful too.”

Lorenz smiled, and raised her hand to press a kiss over her gauntlet. “Of course.”

Marianne clasped her hands together and squeezed her eyes shut. “Dear Goddess...please protect us...”

”She has Her hands full right now, but rest assured we have Her support,” Claude said. Marianne looked at him in confusion.

Ignatz took a deep breath and exhaled sharply. “We can do this. We will be victorious!”

”Of course we’ll be victorious,” Raphael agreed. “After all, you can’t leave your kid fatherless!”

”Raphael, _please_ —”

”I’m looking forward to stopping these people once and for all,” Hapi said, her stoic tone low and dark.

”As am I,” Lysithea said. Linhardt stretched his arms over his head and yawned loudly.

”Then let’s not wait,” Balthus said encouragingly. “Let’s go.”

”Yes,” Seteth said as Catherine helped Rhea back into Whitasu’s saddle. “Let us finish this once and for all.”

* * *

Those Who Slither in the Dark knew they were there, but they were able to move into position in the four corners of Shambhala. Everyone turned their eyes towards the building in the city center. 

“Hey, what are those big…things?“ Claude said from his perch on Gideon’s back. He quickly lowered down to the same level as Leonie and Balthus. “One—two—three. Two are closest to our position, and the third is closest to Hilda’s position. Are they what Hapi was talking about?”

”Guess we got lucky,” Balthus said, grinning.

Seteth and Rhea rose up into the air on Whitasu’s back and they saw the Titanus’s that Claude had also saw. “What is that?!” Seteth exclaimed.

“Demonic Beasts…” Rhea breathed as they sank back to the ground towards Cyril and Catherine. “No, I think not. They appear to have no will of their own. Someone must be controlling them.”

Cyril rose up as well, though he did not look towards the beasts. “There’s a Great Knight on horseback guarding the entrance to the central building,” he said. “There are also these two—pillars on both sides of the knight. They are emitting power.”

“We should be be on our guard then,” Catherine said, readying Thunderbrand. “Those pillars are surely not decorative.”

”I see three soldiers grouped to the north,” Lorenz said. “And two to our right. I believe we should attack the soldiers to our right, so that—”

”CHAAAAAAAARGE!” Raphael roared, running in the direction of the two Dark Bishops.

”Well, Fae _is_ following your orders,” Hapi said plainly, steering Timo gallop after him. 

“Hold on, Raphael!” Ignatz called out, turning Lorrain around to chase after them.

Lorenz sighed heavily, but snapped to attention when he saw the soldiers to the north moving towards them. “No spell-casters in that group,” he observed, raising his hands. “Good.”

Linhardt was whispering to Lysithea, but Hilda was distracted by the commotion coming from the southwest. She guided Matilda to rise up into the air but wrinkled her nose in annoyance as she looked out over the darkness of the city. “Are they fighting already? What’s going on over there?!” She yelped in surprise when she felt a burst of air behind her and she swung Matilda around to glide back to her group. “W-What was that?! We’re we attacked?!”

”No,” Lysithea said plainly. “That was my spell.”

”Y—” Hilda quickly looked around, realizing that only Lysithea and Marianne were staring back at her. “Wait. Where’s Linhardt? H—” She gestured to the Hevring Prayer Troops battalion in front of her. “Aren’t you guys _his_ battalion?”

”A-Ah,” Marianne stammered, but she stopped when Lysithea gave her a look. “I cast my Warp spell on him,” she responded.

”Warp?! B-But where did you send him?!” Hilda snapped. “You _do_ realize our group is now short one person, don’t you?!”

”Lord Linhardt told us to give all assistance to Lady Lysithea,” one of the Hevring Prayer Troop monks responded.

”Look out!” Marianne shouted, her loud tone startling everyone. Hilda looked up as she saw two Bishops racing towards them. She also heard the thunderous steps of the Titanus advancing on them. “Damn it,” Hilda said, hoisting up Freikugel. “You two, stand your ground and wait here. I’ll deal with the Bishops and be back before that— _thing_ gets over here.” She looked at Linhardt’s battalion. “I have a feeling we’re going to need you shortly...”

”Let’s go,” Claude said, waving his arm forward. “It sounds like everyone else is fighting.”

”ALL RIGHT!” Balthus shouted, charging ahead of him.

”People with grappling affinity always seem to be reckless,” Leonie sighed.

“Catherine, could you take the lead ahead of us?” Seteth said, eyeing the soldier to the north of their position. “That soldier seems to be guarding a door.”

”Will do,” Catherine said, charging ahead.

Shambhala was now in high alert as the four groups advanced towards the center. Hilda made quick work of the Bishops and made it back in time to assist Marianne and Lysithea with the Titanus that had advanced on them. Upon defeating the warrior Catherine was able to unlock the door the warrior was guarding. Upon entering the new section though they saw Hilda’s group engaged in a fierce fight with the Titanus and quickly moved towards them to assist. 

“Follow me!” Lorenz called over his shoulder sharply after he dispatched the soldiers he fought. Ahead he saw one of the Titanus’s turning the direction that he knew Claude’s group was located. He felt a brief spike of panic but forced himself to calm down. “Ignatz, do you think you can strike it from this distance?”

”I can try,” Ignatz said. He fired an arrow high into the air, and Lorenz watched the arrow bounce inaffectively off the armored shoulder of the giant doll. The Titanus gave them no heed whatsoever, and continued advancing towards Claude’s group. “ _Damn_!” Lorenz hissed, grabbing Jakob’s reins and steering his horse in the direction of the Titanus.

”Lorie, wait—” Hapi called out after him.

Too late. The moment Jakob’s hooves touched the ground of the central city—the moment Lorenz emerged from the outer wall—a whirling buzzing noise suddenly filled the air.

”What is that noise?” Leonie asked, lowering her bow cautiously.

”Whatever it is, it’s probably Lorenz’s fault,” Claude said dryly.

”Why do you blame everything on Lorenz?” Leonie demanded.

Claude shrugged. “It’s easy.”

”Cl—”

”It’s almost strange hearing you defend Lorenz, Leonie. I guess I might as well get used to it,” Claude laughed. Leonie could only blush and glare in reply.

”Guys, come on!” Balthus shouted back to them excitedly. “That behemoth is coming right for us!”

“Thank you,” Hilda gasped, nodding to Seteth as the Titanus crumbled before them on the ground.

”It was nothing,” Seteth said, nodding. “Though I was not encouraged by how the creature focused its attacks on me...”

”It was most likely because I am by your side,” Rhea said softly, casting her eyes downward.

“Are you okay, Lady Rhea?” Catherine asked again.

”Yes...I am okay.”

Seteth looked towards Cyril rummaging through the remains of the Titanus. “Is there anything useful there?”

”This—thing has four Agarthium,” Cyril said, hauling them up into his arms.

”Wait,” Lysithea said sharply, raising her hand. “Does anyone else hear that?”

The two groups paused, having not heard the whirling noise before. “I...Is that magic?” Marianne asked fearfully.

Hilda opened her mouth to responded, but her vision suddenly filled with blue light. Hot, statically pain ripped through her body and she screamed. The force of the attack knocked her off Matilda, who roared in pain from having experienced same attack.

” _Hilda_!” Lysithea cried out. She tried to catch Hilda, but the older woman slammed hard into her body and they both collapsed to the ground.

” _Lady Hilda_!” 

Claude’s head quickly snapped around at hearing the shouts. _Hilda?_ Before he could react though, his vision was also filled with blue light and he yelped as he was struck with the same attack. He didn’t fall off of Gideon’s back, but the poor wyvern quickly grounded itself as it absorbed the same attack.

”Those pillars!” Cyril shouted, his eyes wide. “They activated! They fired attacks at Claude and Hilda!”

“Matilda!” Her skin was sizzling and smoking, but Hilda was stroking her wvyern’s face with trembling hands. “Matilda, are you okay?! You’re not hurt, are you?!”

”Hilda, are you okay?” Marianne asked her, readying a healing. 

“Yes, I’m fine! I-It was honestly more startling than painful!” Hilda pulled out a Concoction and poured it into Matilda’s mouth. Then she hugged her wyvern and looked at Marianne. “Please, go find Claude! Cyril just said he was attacked!”

“But—”

”I’m okay, but please go and make sure Claude is okay! Find out where he is a-and cast _Physic_ or something!”

”A-All right,” Marianne said softly. She looked to her battalion of Edmund Troops as she drew Blutgang. “P...Please follow me and be careful!” _Goddess, please keep us safe. Please let me see Ferdinand again..._

”Aren’t any of you going to heal our Lady?!” One of Hilda’s battalion soldiers snapped at Linhardt’s battalion.

”His Lordship only commanded us to watch Lady Lysithea,” one replied.

“W—”

”It’s fine,” Hilda interjected, leaning against Matilda for support. “I’m not injured, it just hurt like a bee sting. I’ll be fine if it doesn’t happen again.”

”I can heal you,” Rhea offered, but Hilda shook her head at her. “S...Save it. That doll thing took a lot out of us. We might need your spells later.”

”That...what very astute of you, Hilda,” Seteth said in genuine awe. Hilda glared back at him, as did her battalion.

“Those pillars fired beams of light,” Lorenz observed.

“Judging from the shouting, it sounds like they attacked Clue and Lida,” Hapi agreed.

”I—Clue and Lida?” Lorenz looked at her in confusion. “Who are Clue and Lida?”

”Are those your nicknames for Claude and Hilda?” Raphael asked. He laughed. “You call me Fae after all!”

Lorenz slowly rubbed his forehead with a pained expression. “And...Unless I am terribly mistaken, did you call me Lorie earlier?”

Hapi shrugged. “I think they sound better.”

”But... _Lorie_? Why would you call me Lorie?”

Any further discussion was interrupted but the sudden sounds of thunderous footsteps that rumbled in the air directly due south of them. “W-What was that?!” Ignatz exclaimed.

“It sounds like another one of those dolls,” Hapi said nonchalantly. “I don’t think your arrows will work on that one either, Iggy.”

”It— _Marianne_!” Ignatz shouted in alarm. “Please don’t go that way! The monster is that way!”

”She must be trying to help Claude,” Lorenz said. He swiftly grabbed Jakob’s reins and quickly galloped after her. Ignatz and Raphael quickly followed, but Hapi hung back briefly for a moment. “Mare is too kind for her own good,” she said softly.

_”RAAAAAAAAUGH!”_

Hapi’s head snapped around in alarm. “W...That wasn’t a sigh. Or was it?” Though her tone was still calm but there was a note of panic.

Marianne was able to heal Claude before she was attacked by the Agarthan forces, but the battle quickly fell to chaos as the scattered forces tried to reunite together and formulate a plan. Despite being at a clear disadvantage, Those Who Slither in the Dark were quick to summon a new Titanus as soon as one was destroyed. Hapi’s inadvertent summon of a beast—a Giant Demonic Beast at that—also proved to be troublesome.

“At least the beast is attacking Those Who Slither and not just us,” Leonie sighed.

”I am thankful for that at least, Nut,” Hapi agreed. Her hands began to glow as she readied the Miasma spell.

”Nut?” Leonie sputtered. “What a minute. Is _Nut_ your nickname for me?”

”It sort of fits you,” Claude offered. He waved his arm over his head. “Ignore the Beast Hapi summoned for now! It’ll keep the reinforcements busy! Just focus on the enemy!”

But the Titanus kept coming and, like clockwork, the pillars that stood on either side of the immobile Great Knight fired beams of light that caused minimal damage but served to be an annoyance.

” _Again_?!” Hilda shrieked as the light struck her again. She shook her head furiously as Marianne when she raised a hand to cast a spell.

Claude was also struck for the umpteeth time, and he felt his temper rising. “You all right?” He asked Gideon, rubbing his wyvern’s neck. The white wyvern was thankfully neither alarmed or fatigue. “I feel special for being targeted so much.”

”Something or someone must be controlling them!” Seteth shouted. He worked harder in his fight not only to preserve his own life, but to keep Rhea safe in his saddle. He glared towards the knight, but Rhea shook her head. “That one is guarding. He has not moved.”

”Lord Chilon!” A wounded Agarthan Hero cried out to the knight. “Lord Chilon, he—” Lysithea swiftly dispatched him with a spell. Chilon did not stir when his ally fell.

”Jupiter is fierce with her spells,” Hapi murmured to herself.

”’Jupiter’?” Raphael echoed. He grinned excitedly. “That fits Lysithea perfectly! I think I’ll call her that too! Hey, Jupiter!” He shouted over his shoulder. “Save some for the rest of us!”

” _Jupiter_?!” Lysithea said incredulously, and Claude couldn’t stop himself from cackling even in the middle of battle.

” _Focus_ , everyone!” Catherine shouted. “We need to stop the light attacks and the dolls!”

”Hey!” Leonie said, pointing to the northwest. “Claude, wasn’t one of those in front of that building before? It’s glowing like the ground—we might be able to get in! Hopefully we can figure out how to stop the dolls and the pillars from there!”

“Good idea!” Claude shouted back to her. “Take Bal—”

”I will go with Leonie, I have a Door Key!” Lorenz immediately interjected. Without waiting for Claude’s reply he steered Jakob north. Leonie glanced towards Claude but he only shrugged. “All right, fine! Go with him!”

Leonie didn’t need to be told twice. “Let’s go, Jerr!” She grabbed the reins and rode swiftly after Lorenz.

A gurgling scream of horror ripped through the air from the south, followed by a guttural roar. “Sounds like Hapi’s friend killed the last of their reinforcements!” Balthus shouted. “Get ready, it’ll be coming soon!”

”Can it attack one of these blasted dolls first?!” Cyril shouted, yanking on Siegbert’s reins so that his wyvern rose high in the air to avoid an attack. “More are coming!” 

Claude could indeed count four in the area with them, with a fifth joining them from the east. “I have a feeling the Demonic Beast doesn’t crave metallic parts,” he said dryly. He saw the familiar flash again before he was struck by the light. “Jupiter, attack one of those damned pillars!” He shouted over his shoulder.

”That’s not my name!” Lysithea shouted. Hilda screamed again as she was attacked.

“Seteth, fly me closer to the knight,” Rhea said. Seteth looked at her over his shoulder but did as she requested and steered Whitasu towards Chilon. Seteth saw Chilon turn towards them. “Children of the Goddess,” he boomed. “Dirty blood runs—”

While they were still flying, Rhea’s arm suddenly reached over Seteth’s shoulder. “ _Agnea’s Arrow_.”

Seteth gasped throatily as Rhea’s most powerful spell nearly knocked him out of the saddle with the force of its power. Chilon, finally moved, recoiling in shock, but he did not have time to get away as the spell struck him and knocked straight off his horse and flat on his back on the stairs. His horse neighed in fright and took off running, leaving Chilon alone and defenseless while Catherine raced up with her Thunderbrand and stabbed him underneath his helmet straight through his throat. Chilon was dead within seconds, and Catherine swept down to grab something from his waistband. “Door Key!” She called.

Claude didn’t have time to react to the shout, as the Titanus closest to him began to pulse with power. “Look out!” Ignatz shouted as a Giant Demonic Beast finally emerged from the outer wall. 

_Well, killing that guy didn’t do the trick,_ Claude thought, quickly drawing an arrow. _Maybe Leonie and Lorenz can get a solution before we end up dead._

Lorenz had reached the door first and flew off Jakob’s back. He slammed the Door Key into the lock and the door flew open. Leonie had jumped from Jerr’s back and then jumped straight over Lorenz’s kneeled position, The Inexhaustible already ready with an arrow. Inside the building were two Grapplers, and a woman with a veil covering her face. The Grapplers jumped in front of the woman, but Leonie didn’t falter. “ _Time to pay_!” She shrieked, releasing the arrow. It whizzed straight past the Grapplers and struck the woman presumably between her eyes. “Lady Bias!” One of the Grapplers shouted as she collapsed dead to the floor.

”Leonie,” Lorenz said behind her, and she immediately jumped aside. The two Grapplers looked cornered and almost scared as the Gloucester Knights joined them inside, and Lorenz raised his hand. He smiled thinly. “ _Seize the moment_.”

Outside the building, the remaining six Titanus abruptly stopped in their tracks. The light dimmed from their bodies and they slumped over before collapsing to the ground simultaneously. Everyone held their breaths as they watched the dolls cautiously, but they did not stir. ”Aw, those big things have gone to sleep on us,” Claude said with a mocking tone.

“Finally, they've stopped!” Seteth said in relief. “That should make things easier.”

That _will_ make moving around a lot easier,” Claude mentioned. “A dead end? Or perhaps...No, if we worry about every little detail, we won't get anywhere.”

”Well, that stopped the doll—AUGH!” Hilda shrieked as she was shocked again.

”B, why don’t you tell her to have Mare or Sleepy heal her?” Hapi asked Balthus. “She might listen to you if you tell her to.”

”Well, I can try,” Balthus said, rubbing at his nape. “Where is—uh—what’s his name?”

Hapi looked around as well. “Well. Sleepy’s gone.”

”All right, all right! Hilda, just ask Marianne to heal you!” Balthus shouted. “Holst will kick my ass if you have any lasting scars!”

”I said I’m fi—”

” _Heal_!” Marianne interjected, casting a healing spell on her.

” _Luna_!” Lysithea shouted, firing the spell at the pillar that hadn’t yet fired. Despite Lysithea’s own power, her spell bounced off the pillar like a ball bouncing off the wall, and dissipated into the air. Seconds later the pillar glowed and fired, and though Linhardt’s battalion immediately moved to protect her Claude was again the target. “Not even Lysithea can stop them,” Claude hissed, furiously brushing the smoke off his arms. “Lorenz!” He shouted over his shoulder. “Was there anything else in the building that can control those pillars!”

”There were three people inside of the building!” Lorenz called back as he arrived with Leonie. He saw the Demonic Beast and quickly drew the Axe of Ukonvasara. “Two were—protecting a woman specifically!”

”Right!” Leonie agreed, aiming an arrow at the Beast. “There may not be a mechanism for controlling what’s going on! There may be a _person_!”

“Then if not in the same building, then where?!” Seteth shouted.

”What about that building?” Cyril asked, pointing to the southeast. Indeed, there was a glowing solitary building positioned in the corner hugging the outer wall.

”Huh,” Claude said. “It didn’t notice that before.”

“If the door to the building is like the other, it will need a key!” Lorenz shouted.

”I’ve got the ke—” Cyril said, but Hilda took it from him as she jumped off Matilda’s back. “I’ll take this, thank you.”

”Hilda, w-what are you doing?” Marianne asked her.

”The building to the north controlled those dolls. This building—can be opened. I’m gonna see if the people inside here control those blasted pillars that keep firing beams at me!”

”Are you invading that building, Hilda?” Claude called out as he readied a glowing arrow at the Beast.

”Hilda wants to see if the people controlling the pillars are in there!” Ignatz said.

”Well...good!” Claude called out encouragingly. “Go get ‘em, Hilda!”

”Don’t you want revenge too on those guys, Clue?” Hapi asked him. “They also targeted you frequently.”

”Nah, Hilda’s got this.” Claude focused his attention on the Beast as Hilda burst into the building. “Okay, who was firing that blasted weapon?!”

”Lady Pittacus, the Viskam!” Came a frightened shout from inside the building.

”I just fired it!” Came the reply. “I-It needs to recharge!”

”Oh, so it was YOU!” Hilda shouted menacingly.

 _Good thing Nader isn’t here,_ Claude thought dryly. _If he saw this, then he might **seriously** want Hilda’s hand in marriage._

”RAAAAAAH!” Raphael screamed at the Giant Demonic Beast, squaring his broad shoulders as he tried to look as menacing as possible.

”Raphael, would you _please_ stop screaming at the Beast and fight it?!” Lorenz shouted.

” _Watch this_!” Lysithea shouted, rushing forward with her Ordelia Sorcery Co. Battalion (and Linhardt’s battalion trailing after her). They grouped together and cast the Resonant Lightning Spell, and with this final strike the Demonic Beast fell down dead.

”Awwww!” Raphael shouted in disappointment, his shoulders drooping. “I almost had it!”

”You...were sincerely trying to subdue the Beast with shouting Fae?” Hapi asked in him confusion.

”Well, yeah! If I could make it work, then it would work for you Hapi!”

”Hey, that’s a great idea!” Balthus shouted, pumping his fists. “You can summon Beasts by sighing! Shouting is the opposite of sighing! If they can listen to your voice when it’s soft, then they’ll probably listen to your voice when it’s loud!”

 _That’s...actually a good point,_ Claude thought to himself. 

“Could we _please_ remain focused on the mission?!” Seteth snapped. The moment the words left his mouth though, the whirling noise that had filled the air abruptly ceased. Claude looked north and saw the pillars—the Viskam—were no longer illuminated with light.

”Those awful weapons have been stopped,” Rhea said. She looked towards the building Hilda had rushed into. “They were being controlled from that facility!”

Hilda emerged from the building then, panting heavily but otherwise looking uninjured. “Ugh, fighting wears me out,” she said, wiping at her forehead as she swung back up into Matilda’s saddle. Claude couldn’t see the inside of the building from his position, but he saw Cyril peek in and visibly recoil in shock. _Yeah, she took care of those people_.

”So we stopped the dolls and the—those pillars,” Catherine said, gesturing to the Viskam. “Let’s finish this once and for all and invade the central building!”

“Agreed,” Claude said, readying Failnaught. He took the lead ahead of the group, though he saw Hilda quickly fly up to follow him. He caught the Door Key Catherine threw to him and sailed over Chilon’s body, though he saw Balthus drag it out of the way so that the others wouldn’t have to step over it. Up the stairs was a locked door, but Claude fished out a Door Key. He inserted it into the lock and checked over his shoulder. Hilda, Seteth, and Rhea were directly behind him while the others were at the ready. He nodded to them wordlessly, and they nodded back. Claude then turned the key, and the door flew up.

”Lord Odesse, they’re here!” The War Master to Claude’s left shouted. Claude flew past him though deep into the room, and heard Hilda engage the War Master in battle. Due north of him was a dais up a long staircase, where one Dark Bishop—Odesse, he presumed—stood. Odesse Was shouting something, and was quickly moving his arms as though to cast a spell, but Claude swiftly flew towards him with an arrow aimed. The arrow turned bright red and flew towards Odesse, and though the Agarthan Bishop was able to dodge the attack the attack also stopped whatever spell he had been trying to cast. 

Claude didn’t waste a moment’s time. He guided Gideon and lunged up the stairs towards Odesse while his companions fought the Agarthans behind him. Odesse looked like he was preparing another spell, but Claude quickly fired another arrow. Odesse screamed when the red arrow pierced his right hand and he stumbled backwards, the spell failing to conjure.

”...The one who killed Thales,” Odesse said softly. “They are not here? They met with Myson in Enbarr?”

”She deemed you unworthy of her time,” Claude told him, smiling darkly at him. “Though since you mentioned Thales, you’ll be happy to know that I wounded you the same way I wounded him.” He readied another arrow, but frowned when he looked down at Failnaught. He had never used the Heroes Relic as much as he had in this battle, and he was alarmed at its deteriorating condition. _If I fire another arrow, it will break. And we don’t have any blacksmiths nearby to repair it. This poor Child of the Goddess will fall to pieces if I take the shot. But if I hesitate, I will end up dead._

After a moment though, he swung Failnaught over his shoulder and readied a Silver Bow. He took aim as Odesse yanked the red arrow out of his hand and raised his left. “D—”

” _Hades_!”

Odesse was suddenly surrounded by black and purple power, and Gideon bucked as the powerful spell consumed Odesse. He screamed again and made several retching noises behind his long mask. Claude saw dark blood dripping from the underside of his mask as he fell to his knees. Claude looked over his shoulder and saw that the remaining Agarthans had been dealt with. His smile relaxed as he saw Lysithea racing up the stairs behind him, and he knew that she was the one who had casted the spell. “Hey you!” Lysithea shrieked as she came to Claude’s side, glaring at Odesse. “Do you know who I am?! Do you remember what you people did to me?!”

Odesse was partially sitting, partially lying on the ground, his breathing labored and wheezing. He feebly raised his hand again but Lysithea was faster. “ _HADES_!” The second cast of the spell was enough, flipping Odesse’s body straight onto his back as his blood splattered against the glowing floor.

“T...Thales,” Odesse grunted one last time, his body twitching. He used the last of his strength to throw a spell up into the air before slumping against the floor dead.

”ALL RIGHT!” Raphael cheered from the door as yet another loud roar filled the air. “There’s another monster! Let me try yelling again!”

”H-He summoned a monster?!” Lysithea sputtered, looking towards Odesse.

”That may have been his specialty,” Claude said. He started steering Gideon towards the stairs but then Hilda shouted up at him. “Hold position, Claude! We won the battle, you need to stand your ground on the dais!”

”Ah,” Claude said, though he felt left out as Lysithea raced down the stairs and the group engaged the new Beast that had arrived. The Beast was so large that when it burst through the door it took out the entire wall. Claude was concerned that the entire building would come down on top of them all, but the structure stood firm during the brief fight. Raphael insistently took the lead, screaming at the Beast in an effort to subdue him. “Come on, Hapi!” He shouted over his shoulder.

”Um,” Hapi said, briefly looking around. After a moment she cleared her throat and leaned forward in her saddle. “HAAA!” She shouted, her uncharacteristic loud voice startling those around her. Claude looked back at the Beast then, and—he saw it. It was brief, very brief, but...from her shout the Beast _flinched_.

” _Judgment is passed_!” Seteth shouted, taking advantage of the Beast’s distraction to make the killing blow. Claude saw Raphael completely deflate from his position. _Well, it worked. Almost._

With the Beasts dead, the Agarthan soldiers dead, and the Titanus and Viskam disabled, Shambhala abruptly filled with silence save for the heavy and exhausted breathing of the Golden Deer and Church of Seiros soldiers. The tension was thick, and no one had the energy to celebrate this first victory. For it was not a complete victory yet.

_We still need to find Nemesis._

Claude saw Seteth and Rhea flying towards him to join him on the dais, with the others trailing behind them, no doubt to do a debriefing. Claude glanced against towards Odesse’s body, and that was when he noticed an object lying on a table at the back of the dais. He guided Gideon to move closer to the object, and he gasped hard when got a better look at it.

It was a black sword.

Claude pulled the drawing out of his pocket and held it up over the sword. He heard Seteth and Rhea arrive behind him and he looked over his shoulder at Rhea. “It looks like this is it,” he said. “The Dark Creator Sword. The weapon Those Who Slither in the Dark intended on Nemesis using.”

”I...It looks almost like a perfect replica of the Sublime Creator Sword,” Ignatz said softly as he approached behind Claude..

“This thing is an anathema,” Rhea said, her tone low and dark as Catherine helped her dismount from Whitasu. Her expression twisted, almost looking scary. “It is a bastardization of the Holy Sword. To think th...” she shuddered violently. “T...They killed Her. They killed Her and molded Her into a weapon. A-And if that was not bad enough, they made _this_?! A copy of Her?!”

Claude felt his heartbeat in his throat and he looked out over his companions. They all wore expressions of confusion as they gaped at Rhea, and Hilda came up to Claude’s left giving him a knowing look. Claude knew that in her distress Rhea was revealing more than she intended to everyone. He looked back at Rhea but saw that Seteth had also dismounted and was at her side, whispering into her ear. After a moment she ducked her head and let out a painful, exhausted sigh. She slowly turned around to face the group. “I...must apologize for rambling so. I am not as well as I thought, and am in fact feeling quite overwhelmed by everything.”

“I don’t think anyone could blame you,” Claude quickly offered, and he didn’t miss the gratitude in Seteth’s expression. “We’ve done a lot and our work is not yet done.” He saw his companions relax, and he knew his words had helped the situation.

”Lady Rhea,” Marianne said, moving forward with Dorte. “I, ah...I still having some healing spells. I can heal you if you—”

”No,” Rhea said, her tone turning gentle again as she shook her head. “That is not necessary, Marianne.”

”Lady Rhea, I believe you should sit down for a moment,” Catherine said softly. “We still do not know the extent of your injuries.”

”I appreciate your concern, but I—must finish this. Once and for all.”

Claude gestured to the sword. “Well since Those Who Slither went to the trouble of making this for the King of Liberation. Let’s undue their hard work. Would you like to do the honors, Rhea?”

” _Lady_ Rhea,” Cyril corrected him. 

Rhea turned back around and stared at the sword again. After a moment she raised her right hand. “ _Agnea’s Arrow_.” The powerful spell immediately enveloped the Dark Creator Sword, but though Claude saw several bright cracks form along the length of the sword, it otherwise did not combust. Rhea then lowered her hand as the glow of her spell started to dim. “Seteth.”

”Yes, Rhea?” Seteth said softly

”May I have use of the Spear of Assal?”

Seteth didn’t hesitate, and quickly placed the Sacred Weapon in her hands. “It is yours to use,” Seteth said. “Hopefully it will be strong enough to destroy this thing.”

”Even if it’s not, it gives a healing boost to the user, does it not?” Claude asked.

”It does,” Seteth confirmed.

Rhea stood over the Dark Creator Sword, her expression hardening again. “...For everything that was taken from me. From us. Finally, we will have retribution.” She swung the Spear of Assal high, but suddenly swayed on her feet. Both Seteth and Catherine surged forward and held her steady on both sides of her as Rhea swung the spear down. The Sacred Weapon connected with the fake Heroes Relic with almost a crunching sound that made Claude wince. The black sword then burst into dozens of pieces with a loud ‘BANG’. Everyone jumped back slightly as chunks of varying sizes flew through the air.

Claude whistled softly as he saw what looked like the sword’s handle fall onto the floor in front of Gideon and him. “Well,” he said. “That’s one problem solved.”

”Lady Rhea,” Seteth said suddenly, and Claude noticed she was swaying in his and Catherine’s arms.

”I am fine,” Rhea reassured him, though she looked unsteady on her legs.

”I—” Marianne said, but Claude waved her off. _She already said no to a healing spell._

”So we’ve destroyed the weapon meant for Nemesis,” Lysithea said, folding her arms over her chest. “Now, where is Nemesis?”

”Maybe one of the Agarthans are alive to...” Hapi’s voice slowly trailed off as they looked across the room and the bodies on the floor. “Never mind,” she said. “They’re all dead.”

“H-Hold on,” Ignatz said, guiding Lorrain down the stairs and to the northwest side of the room. “Claude, come here!” He shouted.

”What is it?” Claude asked, guiding Gideon down the stairs. He reached Ignatz’s side and saw that he was pointing. In the far corner, he saw that the floor had been disturbed. When he moved closer, he realized that the disturbed floor revealed a set of stairs going down.

”Well,” Leonie said. “That’s where he is, then.”

* * *

The stairs case was narrow and steep, so the decision was made to leave the horses and wyverns in the main room with their battalion soldiers. Silence filled the area as they descended into the sub level. The walls still pulsed with blue energy but there was a heavy coating of dust and cobwebs on surfaces and corners. Claude kept the lead, feeling too open, as he reached the bottom step. Before him lay a darkened hallway with open rooms. They did not seem to have doors. He took a step forward when he heard a loud ‘thump’ ahead of him from the first room to his right. The sound startled him, and startled the people following him. “Claude?” Hilda called to him warily.

”It’s all right,” Claude said. He didn’t reach for Failnaught but instead moved forward and turned into the room. His brow rose when he saw Linhardt in the room, and quickly surveyed his surroundings. It looked like a library of sorts; not nearly as big as the library at Garreg Mach or Abyss, but still a sizable library. The table before Linhardt held several unsteady piles of books, and Linhardt was nonchalantly flipping through a book. He didn’t acknowledge Claude’s presence, and instead shoved the book into his satchel. He grabbed another book from one of the shelves and quickly flipped through the pages. “No,” he said quietly, and threw the book onto the table with another loud ‘thump’.

_...Ah. So this is where he was while we were fighting._

”Linhardt?!” Seteth snapped, breaking the silence and storming into the library. “What in the name of the Goddess do you think you’re doing?! Am I right in assuming that you sneaked away down here while _we_ fought Those Who Slither in the Dark?!” Claude sensed his comrades join him in the doorway, and Lysithea gently nudged past him to enter the room.

”Ah, so there you were Sleepy,” Hapi said. She paused for a moment in the doorway before continuing down the hallway.

”So you were victorious,” Linhardt said, looking up briefly before looking down at his new book. “Congratulations. I knew that you would be successful.” He looked down at the pages for another long moment before tossing the book towards the table (and missed) and then grabbed another book. Lysithea picked up a book from the table and opened it. She made a noise of annoyance. “The pages are smudged. I can’t read the writing.”

”That is why I’m not bothering with it,” Linhardt said, glancing at her briefly before closing the book he held and moving to shove it into his satchel.

”How did you get down here, bypassing the Agarthans?” Claude asked with genuine curiosity. “More so, how did you get beyond the locked door?”

”I cast a Warp spell on him and sent him as far as I could,” Lysithea supplied.

Claude arched a brow at her. “Really? I didn’t realize that you could Warp someone to an unknown location like that.”

Lysithea shrugged. “I generally can’t, but I experienced a surge in magic. Probably from last night like Linhardt.”

Seteth surged forward and grabbed the book before it disappeared inside Linhardt’s bag. “These are the writings of the Agarthans!” Seteth hissed at him. “The enemy of the Church of Seiros! These books are not yours to take! They are now the property of the Church, and it is by the will of our Church leader what is to be done with these books!”

Linhardt stared at him for a long moment of silence, his expression blank. Finally, he nodded. “You are right. I understand.”

”Than—”

”So I will ask Professor Byleth when we return to Garreg Mach if I may keep them.” He yanked the book out of Seteth’s hand and shoved it into his satchel.

Claude snorted loudly as Seteth’s face suddenly turned purple and he began sputtering in outrage as Linhardt turned away from him and looked inside his satchel. “This is all that will fit in. Hopefully I will find what I am looking for in one of these books.” He tried to pull the satchel’s flap over the bag but the bag was stuffed full and the flap recoiled back. Claude quickly scanned what he could see inside the bag and estimated that he had twelve books inside the bag, nine of them hardcover. One of them was at least thirty centimeters thick.

”It...Do you need more time to look?” Lysithea asked him. She did not acknowledge Seteth.

Linhardt shrugged. “Perhaps. But these books will hopefully give me the answers we need.”

 _We need?_ Claude looked between the two of them, and he stiffened as realization quickly dawned on him.

”You—” Seteth snapped.

”Maybe you should let it go this time,” Claude said, moving into the room to grab Seteth’s arm. “I think Linhardt has already proven that he would not cause harm to the Church.”

”But these books—”

”Lady Rhea appointed Teach as the acting leader of the Church,” Claude reminded him. “This is her decision what should be done with those books.” _If the secret to saving Lysithea’s life is in those books, Teach will definitely let Linhardt keep them,_ he added silently.

”But Lady Rhea is here! And the information in these books could be very dangerous!”

”Somehow I doubt Lady Rhea will care about any pillaging,” Claude said looking towards the door at the faces in the doorway. “ _Is_ Lady Rhea coming?” He asked.

Hilda looked down the hallway towards the stairs. “She’s coming. Catherine and Cyril are helping her.”

”Good, you can go help her too,” Claude told Seteth, steering him towards the door. He looked at Linhardt over his shoulder. “Just do everyone a favor and ask Teach whether or not you can keep these books, okay?”

”Okay,” Linhardt said in a dull, monotone voice.

Rhea was sandwiched between Catherine and Cyril as they reached the bottom steps. “Is everything okay?” She asked.

”We—” Seteth began.

”Fantastic, let’s go,” Claude interjected, waving to them. “Nemesis has to be around here somewhere.”

”Hey, guys?” Hapi called from one of the rooms on the left. Claude led the group to the room in question, and saw Hapi standing beside a box that was lit with blue energy. It buzzed along the sides, and two blue lights glowed in the windows on the top and bottoms of the lid. The box was the size and shape of a coffin. The room was otherwise empty.

”Hey, Hapi?” Raphael raced over to her. “What is it?”

”I know this woman,” Hapi said bluntly.

”Woman?” Seteth said in confusion. He looked towards Rhea. “Th...The Agarthans didn’t keep anyone else from back then, did they?”

”They are quite capable of terrible things so it would not surprise me,” Rhea said. 

Claude moved towards the coffin and stood at the head. He peered inside the window and saw the face of a woman in her mid-thirties. She looked like she was asleep; her eyes were closed and her brown hair rested neatly against the pillow. But then he noticed her chalky complexion and translucent lips...and further down he saw a horizontal line across her throat, slightly jagged on her skin.

He frowned deeply. “Her throat was slit,” Claude said, his tone grim. “It was cleaned afterwards, but you can see the blood soaked into her collar. This woman was murdered.”

Hilda came to Claude’s side and looked inside the window. She gasped throatily and grabbed his arm. “ _Claude_ ,” she hissed in alarm, her eyes going wide. “This woman—this is Anselma! This is _Edelgard’s mother_!”

”Edelgard’s mother?” Linhardt asked as he approached them. Despite his own negative relationship with Edelgard, his face was full of horror. 

“It’s definitely her,” Hilda said, nodding furiously. “I remembered seeing her painting in Enbarr’s palace! It had her name below the painting and everything!”

”You’re correct,” Hapi agreed. “This is Dimitr’s stepmother, Patricia. So she _is_ Edelgard’s mother.”

”H-How do you know that?” Balthus asked her, gaping at her.

”When that woman held me captive, _she_ visited us often,” Hapi said, pointing to the coffin. “The witch may have manipulated this woman, but Patricia—rather, Anselma, didn’t like it when she hurt me. The witch never hurt me when she was there. But she is the one who filled Anselma’s head with lies. Her...and Thales told Anselma that Dimitri’s father hid Edelgard from her, and that _he_ was the reason Anselma never saw Edelgard...and that he was the reason she was taken away back to the Empire.”

“So that’s what happened,” Claude breathed, looking down at the dead woman before them. “Those Who Slither manipulated Dimitri’s stepmother—Edelgard’s mother—and she helped them plan the Tragedy of Duscur. They spirited her away from the massacre, but once she was no longer useful to them they killed her.”

”Edelgard...” Linhardt’s voice trailed off softly. His expression was somber. “She...I don’t believe she ever saw her mother again.”

”She does not know what happened to her mother,” Rhea confirmed softly. “There were times when I heard her speaking, and she referred to her mother in the present tense.”

”People are dead, and _she_ had a hand in it,” Leonie said. She looked both angry and anguished. “Dimitri’s father, Felix’s brother—Dedue’s _entire country_! This woman helped cause those deaths just to see her daughter—and Those Who Slither couldn’t even grant her that mercy before killing her?!”

”Well, like mother like daughter,” Hilda said bitterly.

”Hilda!” Lysithea said sharply.

”Look, I’m sorry that she lost her daughter but Leonie is right! An entire country was razed and its people murdered because of this _bitch_!” Hilda jabbed her finger at the coffin. “If being married to Dimitri’s father was _so_ unbearable, then she should’ve run away into the damned night and gone back to her home country! Better yet, why didn’t she just _talk_ to Dimitri’s father about what she felt was wrong?!” She waved her arms furiously. “This woman and Edelgard! They’re both so self-centered on what _they_ wanted! Their own personal desires mattered more to them than anything else, and _people died_ because of them!”

”Hilda.” Lorenz raised a hand and spoke in a surprisingly calm voice. “The Tragedy of Duscur would have happened with or without the help of Edelgard’s mother. She was only a pawn in the games of Those Who Slither in the Dark.”

”She’s a pawn who killed her own husband and tried to kill her stepson! I don’t feel the least bit sorry for her! I hope she suffered in her final moments, knowing that people died due to her actions and she _got nothing in return_!”

”Damn, you’re pretty ruthless Hilda,” Balthus breathed.

Claude grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her into a hug. “Please be calm,” he murmured against her hair. “This woman is dead. Screaming at her corpse will not right the wrongs she has done. She is not here to hear your words anyway.”

”...I know,” Hilda said quietly. “I just...I’m filled with disgust over everything these awful people have done.”

”That’s why all of us are stopping them.” Claude released her and looked at the others. The Golden Deer and Church soldiers were taking turns looking inside Anselma’s coffin with varying expressions of somber and contempt. “There’s nothing we can do for her now,” Claude said, keeping his tone calm. “She is dead, and Edelgard will be dead before she knows the fate of her mother. We need to keep moving and find Nemesis.”

Everyone was in agreement and shuffled out of the room to continue down the corridor, following the white light in the floor. Claude moved to the front, but Hilda raced ahead to walk partially in front of him. Claude noticed behind him that Rhea tried to move towards the front by Seteth and Catherine held her back.

They past the open rooms and the hallway grim dimmer and dustier. Debris littered the hallway along the walls, and they even had to step over broken stones. The air was still stagnant but Claude felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. He felt uncomfortable energy in the air. Unfamiliar energy.

_He’s down here. I know he is._

He blinked to adjust to their dimming surroundings, and it was then that the corridor opened to a dead-end. The white line in the floor curved to the left and ended at the wall—lined with five coffins glowing with blue light.

Claude arched a brow as he looked around the area. There were eleven coffins total, standing upright with five on the left and six on the right, opposite walls facing each other. The coffin in the center on the left was wrapped in chains, but Claude’s eyes first gravitated to the coffin on this coffin’s right. He noticed an engraving on the right side of the coffin and wiped the dust away. “ _...Riegan_ ,” he read aloud.

He heard exclamations of shock behind him, and the Golden Deer quickly dispersed to check each of the coffins for engraved names.

“ _Gloucester_?” Lorenz breathed, running his hand along the name engraved into the coffin last in the row on the right side. He leaned up to look inside the little window. “This—is this my _ancestor_?!”

Claude was also curious and peered inside the window of the _Riegan_ coffin. He saw the face of a man in his late thirties, unshaven but otherwise also looking to be asleep. Claude frowned. “Hmm. He doesn’t look anything like me.”

”They preserved the Ten Elites,” Seteth said softly. He glanced towards Rhea. “The Agarthans—they were going to recreate the Army from long ago?!”

”I am not surprised,” Rhea said quietly.

”But...why would they keep the Ten Elites down here...if they were Nemesis’s enemies?” Marianne asked quietly.

Claude looked towards Seteth and saw that he was staring at Rhea. Rhea was silent for a long moment before she shook her head. “It...Is not of importance.”

Claude wondered if his comrades would have more questions, but they all seemed occupied with the coffins throughout the room. Hilda hoisted herself up against the coffin labeled _Goneril_ that was beside Riegan’s. She looked inside the window and scoffed. “This guy looks exactly like my brother. Why am I not surprised?”

Cyril knelt beside the first coffin in the row on the right, running his fingers over the engraved name. “La—La—Lamine?”

”Yes, that’s Lamine,” Lysithea confirmed.

”I-I think Mercie told me once that her ancestor was Lamine,” Cyril said thoughtfully. He stood up and looked in the window. “Hey wow! This lady looks exactly like Mercie!”

” _Daphnel_ ,” Ignatz read on the coffin beside Lamine’s. He looked at Claude over his shoulder. “Judith and Ingrid share Daphnel as an ancestor, don’t they?”

”Hey, that’s right!” Claude said, quickly moving to look inside of Daphnel’s coffin. “Aww, he looks exactly like Ingrid! I’m sure Judith would be disappointed!”

”Hey, come here!” Raphael laughed loudly, peering into the coffin on the other side of the chained coffin. “This fellow looks exactly like Dimitri!”

”Well that’s not surprising Fae, since he is in a coffin labeled _Blaiddyd_ ,” Hapi said blandly, gesturing to the side of the coffin.

“Ah, _Dominic_ ,” Linhardt read on the coffin in the center on the right. “That’s Annette’s ancestor. It’s quite ironic how proficient Annette is with Reason, when her ancestor wielded an axe.”

”She swings Crusher pretty well,” Hilda said.

”And here’s Gautier,” Leonie read on the coffin beside _Gloucester_. Lorenz scoffed in disgust. “I cannot believe they put _my_ ancestor beside Sylvain’s!”

” _Fraldarius_ ,” Lysithea read from the coffin at the end of the row on the left. She tried to lift herself to see inside but could not reach. Balthus quickly came up behind her, hooked his arms under hers, and hoisted her up with a laugh. “Here you go, little lady!”

”Put me down!” Lysithea shouted, struggling briefly. “You—” her voice broke off when she was able to see inside the window. “Incredible,” she breathed. “This woman is very beautiful! Felix looks exactly like her!”

”At least we know now what Felix would’ve been an attractive woman if he’s been born a girl!” Balthus laughed. 

_Good thing Felix isn’t here,_ Claude thought to himself.

“ _Charon_ ,” Catherine read on the coffin between Dominic and Gautier. “This...This is my ancestor.” She quickly stood up and looked inside. She swallowed hard. “He looks like my father...”

“So we’ve identified the Ten Elites,” Claude said, standing in the center of the room. He looked towards the coffin wrapped in chains. “So that one must be...”

Rhea moved to stand in front it. “...There he is,” she said grimly.

”The King of Liberation himself,” Claude said, moving to stand at Rhea’s side. He arched a brow at the chains. “That’s pretty ominous.”

”We should lay the coffin on the ground,” Seteth said. “Should anything happen, it will be easier to engage Nemesis when he is in a position of vulnerability.”

”I’d say being sealed inside a coffin wrapped in chains is already a position of vulnerability,” Hilda said blandly.

Raphael and Balthus both carefully moved Nemesis’s coffin and turned it to lie it on the ground in front of them. Everyone else had their weapons out and ready as they watched the blue window in the coffin. The pair settled the coffin on the ground with a loud ‘BOOM’, and everyone except Rhea jumped back and waited. After a few moments there was a collective exhale of breath as they realized that Nemesis would not be bursting free from his coffin.

Not yet at least.

Rhea stared down into the coffin’s window with a frightening expression. “He looks the same.” Her tone was chilling.

Seteth looked inside as well and recoiled, visibly shuddering. “...He does,” he said shakily.

Claude was nonplussed though as he looked inside the coffin. At the scarred face of the man who killed Sothis and stole Her power. The King of Liberation, who committed heinous atrocities, and the person Those Who Slither in the Dark sought to bring back from the dead to achieve their goals. His corpse lay perfectly still inside the coffin, silver hair long and wild even while lying perfectly still. “You know,” he said finally. “For a man who inspired fear in others he looks like nothing more than a old man who’s lived for too long.”

Linhardt looked inside the coffin as well. “There is slight decomposition, but the corpse looks good for being being dead for a thousand years. Much like the other corpses here.” He knelt down beside the coffin. “I want to know the magic that preserves a dead body for a millennia. Would it be all right if I—”

“Do _not_ disturb the coffin!” Seteth said sharply. “He may wake up!”

Linhardt glanced up. “How?”

”I do not know how, but do not do anything to the coffin!”

Lindhardt deflated and sighed heavily. “All right, fine.”

Hilda walked up to stand beside Claude. “So what’s the de—GAAAH!” she looked inside Nemesis’s coffin and suddenly shrieked. She jumped back, hovering her hands over as she screamed in horror and—and _fear_.

”Hilda?” Marianne squeaked in fear.

“We have to kill him!” Hilda screamed, quickly readying Freikugel and raising it over her head. “We have to kill him _right now_!”

”Whoa, Hilda!” Balthus shouted. He grabbed her wrists with both of his hands. “Calm down! What are you getting so worked up about?!”

”Please do not strike the coffin!” Seteth said sharply. “We do not know if it may trigger his ressurection!”

”He’s a monster! If he wakes up, he—” the color had drained from Hilda’s face, her haunted and frightened expression was unsettling to look at. She was breathing fast and ragged as she stared at the coffin. “He—oh _Goddess_ , he’s evil! H-He’s strong and merciless and—his black eyes and the scars all over his body!” She seemed to be blabbering in her hysteria. “H-He had these three claw-like scars on his chest, like he fought a Demonic Beast with his bare hands!”

Seteth stiffened, and Rhea’s head snapped up and she looked at Hilda. “How do you know that? H...How could you _possibly_ know about that?”

Claude quickly inserted himself between Rhea and Hilda and gently pulled Hilda away from Balthus. “Please excuse us, we’ll be right back.”

“Claude—” Balthus quickly said.

“I will take of this, thank you.” Claude hurried back down the corridor with Hilda. They made it back to the open rooms and Claude pulled Hilda into it. He checked to make sure that no one had followed them before spinning Hilda around and cupping her face in his hands. Her face was twisted in pain and tears were leaking out of her eyes. “What happened?” Claude kept his tone low and calm though his heart was pounding. “Why did you have that reaction to seeing Nemesis?”

Hilda groaned quietly in agony, and Freikugel fell from her hand and clattered to the floor. She reached up and touched his wrists as she choked on a loud sob and squeezed her eyes shut. “...You know him,” Claude breathed. “You talked about his appearance in a way that was not visible from what we could see from the coffin’s window. How do you know Nemesis without ever having seen him before?”

Hilda shook her head, her teeth clenched as she quietly sobbed for a few moments. Then she lifted her head and met his gaze. “I...my dream.”

”Dream?”

”R...Remember? I told you that I had a nightmare several years ago where you and I were attacked in a toxic swamp. I-I was forced to watch while you were t-tortured and...” she groaned again and ducked her head again. Her body trembled violently as she struggled to speak. “...It was him.”

”Him?” Claude’s head snapped up as he looked towards the open doorway. He looked down at Hilda. “H...The person who killed me in your dream? It was _Nemesis_?!”

Hilda jerked her head in a nod. “I—I don’t know _why_ it was him I saw. I had never seen his face before that dream. But it was him! He a-ambush us, a-and he killed you w-with—” she suddenly fumbled with Claude’s pockets and pulled out the drawing of the evil version of the Sublime Creator Sword. “I-It was with this sword!”

Claude stared down at the drawing for a long moment of silence before he forced a smile. “Well then, it’s a good thing that we destroyed this sword before he could carve me up like a pheasant with it.”

” _Claude!_ ” Hilda almost shrieked.

”Hey.” He kept his tone gentle and he pulled her into another hug. “I have no intention of dying at the hands of some old geezer like the King of Liberation. And we’re not alone like we were in your dream, so it wasn’t some premonition of the future you were having. I’m quite curious as to how you were able to conjure Nemesis in your mind like that years before even seeing his face, but I’m not going to put myself in that position. So don’t worry about a thing, Hilda. Don’t let this guy scare you.”

”I’m not scared of him,” Hilda said hotly. “I’m scared that I won’t be able to protect you from him.”

Claude’s smile relaxed into a more genuine one and he squeezed her tighter in his arms. _Now I get it. Nemesis’s presence wasn’t what scared her about the dream. It was watching Nemesis hurt me, and then kill me, that scared her the most. I wonder...was having this nightmare what made her realize her feelings for me?_

”...When did you have this dream exactly?” He asked softly, somewhat motivated by that last question in his mind.

Hilda sucked in a sharp breath and went stiff in his arms. He pushed her away gently to look at her face, but her head was ducked away from him. “Hilda?”

”I had it the day before I joined the Blue Lions,” she said flatly.

”The day be...” Claude let his voice trailed off as he suddenly felt nauseas with the confirmation. He swallowed thickly and steadied his voice. “You...You had that dream the day I broke up with you?”

Hilda didn’t say anything, but she nodded her head after a moment. Claude let out a sharp breath, feeling a rupture of pain inside of him, and he cupped her face again and forced her to look up at him. “Why didn’t you tell me then?” He asked softly. “Y...You came to me that morning because of the nightmare, didn’t you? W...Why didn’t you say anything?”

Hilda held his gaze unflinchingly. “Would you have still broken my heart if I told you?”

Claude stared back at her stunned. He felt a denial immediately form on his tongue but he swallowed it. Hilda deserved nothing but the truth from him. “...Yes.”

Hilda shook her head, and then leaned forward to rest her forehead against his chest directly over his heart. “It—It doesn’t matter in the end. What’s the past is the past. You’ve apologized to me and I’ve forgiven you. I...I’m sorry for my outburst. When I saw his face I just remember that nightmare, and I...”

Claude grabbed her again and kissed her hard. He didn’t know what came over him, but knowledge that she was tormented by something so horrible...and she suffered in silence for years about it (uncharacteristically keeping it to himself) was almost too much for him. It horrified and disgusted him that the one person he loved most in the world continuously suffered because of him.

_And she will continue to suffer when I leave her to return home._

Hilda pulled away from him, but when Claude opened his eyes he saw her familiar sensual smile that made his knees weak. “I’d asked where that came from, but I would rather ask for more,” she murmured. Claude obliged, hoisting her up into his arms—

“ _CLAUDE_!”

They quickly broke the kiss and he set Hilda down as they turned to the doorway. Lysithea stood there, looking to be out of breath but her face was turning red from embarrassment and rage. “How can you two be doing— _that_ , at a time like this?! Get over here right now! Something’s happening!”

”You’re so bossy, Lysithea,” Claude complained playfully, but he knew that she was serious and quickly hurried towards the door. Lysithea was already running back down the hallway towards Nemesis’s resting place. Linhardt suddenly emerged from the shadows and ran past Claude and Hilda. “Where are you going?” Claude asked in genuine confusion.

”I’m grabbing more books!” Linhardt shouted over his shoulder. He turned into the library and disappeared from sight.

They hurried back down the hallway after Lysithea, and Claude almost paused in his steps when he saw the black-purple smoke billowing from the corridor. He saw everyone armed and in fighting positions surrounding Nemesis’s coffin. The black-purple smoke was coming from the coffin itself, it rapidly increasing speed. “Oh,” Claude said, his tone nonchalant as he readied Failnaught. “That doesn’t look good.”

”It is happening,” Seteth said gravely, his face white. “We were too late!”

”It is not too late,” Rhea said, her voice calm but her face hard. “Nemesis will not return. I will not allow it.”

”So what’s the plan?” Claude asked, pointing an arrow at the coffin. “Should we simultaneously attack with our Heroes Relics and Sacred Weapons?”

Rhea shook her head and squared her shoulders. “All of you will need to evacuate as quickly as possible. I will take care of this myself.”

”Lady Rhea!” Cyril cried out in horror.

”I’m not leaving your side!” Catherine said sharply. “What is it you plan on doing?!”

”I am doing what I had done long ago. Putting an end to Nemesis.”

”’Long ago’?” Leonie asked warily.

Rhea looked up again. “Please, leave. That is all the warning I will give. I do not want to cause your deaths, so please depart before anything happens to you.”

”Rhea,” Seteth breathed. He took one step towards her. “You...Are you—”

”Seteth.” Rhea held his gaze. “This is my final order to you. Leave me and get everyone out.”

”I...” Seteth looked so shaken that Claude was concerned that he would faint. After a long and uncomfortable moment of silence he slowly nodded. “I...understand.” He swiftly turned around. “Let us leave! We are deep underground and we must move quickly to get to the surface!”

“Lady Rhea, I am _not_ leaving you behind!” Cyril snapped. His tone was on the verge of hysteria.

”Lady Rhe—” Catherine began.

“Cassandra.” 

Catherine stiffened, and immediately flushed as Rhea looked at her. “Thank you for your loyalty to me. Thank you for your faith in me. I ask of you now to not let your loyalty or faith waver. Please, go.”

Catherine’s eyes reddened with unshod tears. She swallowed, the noise loud and painful, before she reluctantly nodded. “All right. Let’s go!” She shouted. “We need to leave right now!”

Cyril remained undeterred however and grabbed Lady Rhea’s arm. “I’m not leaving your side!” —But Catherine grabbed him with both hands. There was a brief struggle but she overpowered him and forcibly dragged him away from Rhea and back down the corridor.

Everyone began to quickly evacuate, but Claude held back long enough to stare at Rhea. “I may as well say my piece now,” he said. “I understand that you wanted to protect your people, but you created a culture of prejudice and elitism over the course of a millennia. Countless people who never did you harm have died because of false beliefs that you spread. I—If you survive this, I hope that you have no intentions of taking control back of the Church. I feel that if you do, then the status quo will remain. That there will be more harm than good in the years to come. I hope that you will leave everything in Teach’s hands, because I believe she will do better.”

Rhea smiled sadly. “I understand that you see me as a hazardous relic who will only harm the future.”

”I do,” Claude agreed. “I want to make the world a better place, and I do not think the world will be made better if you have any sort of power.”

Rhea nodded, and tears spilled down her cheeks. “Do not worry. I...have already gained everything that I’ve needed.”

“ _Claude_!” Hilda came back and grabbed his arm. “What are you doing?! We need to go _now_!”

“I know.” Claude turned to leave, but briefly looked at her. “Well, I’ll thank you for Teach at least. Had you not saved her, then...” he quickly shook his head. “I don’t want to think about it. Goodbye, Rhea.” They turned to run back down the corridor, and as they did a bright white light filled the darkness.

The journey out of Shambala did not take as much time as it did entering the city. Linhardt and his battalion trailed behind them because they were all carrying books, but the group moved fast as their surroundings shook and the walls crumbled around them. It was not a moment too soon when they escaped; Linhardt’s final battalion member crossed the entrance when the gateway fold in on itself. The area seemed consumed by an unnatural earthquake, and loud roars filled the air. Claude was very concerned that the “javelins of light” that Rhea had mentioned would suddenly appear, but he saw no attacks come from the sky. He guided Gideon to Seteth’s side, and the man’s face was gaunt and pale. His breathing was pained and wheezing as they watched the surface collapsed in on itself. Collapse on Shambhala.

When the earth went still, no longer shaking, another loud roar filled the air and a burst of light erupted from the debris. Claude gaped as a white dragon burst from the remains of Shambhala. He choked when he saw that both of the dragon’s wings were broken, and it was covered in gashes gushing blood. Seteth let out an inhuman cry, “ _NO_!” —and swiftly flew towards the dragon. Claude felt something slam into his back, and he turned and saw that Catherine had climbed into the saddle behind him. Without saying a word he flew after Seteth with Catherine. Nearby Lysithea had jumped onto Marianne’s horse and Linhardt jumped onto Cyril’s wyvern as they raced towards the dragon crawling across the debris.

The dragon found a steady piece of ground and collapsed onto its side. The body began to glow, and right before their eyes the body morphed and shrunk. When the glow faded, the beaten and unmoving body of Rhea lay partially facedown. She was bleeding so heavily that her white dress was almost fully stained red.

”RHEA!” Seteth flew off Whitasu and scooped her up into his arms. He looked up as the group approached, tears streaming down his cheeks. “Help! Her body is cold!”

Catherine collapsed at her side and pressed a hand over her heart. “It...yes, she has a heartbeat! But it’s too faint!”

Marianne raced over to her, quickly followed by Linhardt. Lysithea took Rhea from Seteth and laid her on the ground. Seteth was uncharacteristically hysterical, and he pressed a hand over his mouth. “I—I should have had Flayn come with us! We do not have enough healers! Oh, I am such a fool!”

Both Marianne and Linhardt knelt down on either side of Rhea, their hands hovering over her. “How many _Heals_ do you still have?” Linhardt asked her.

”Three,” Marianne said softly. Linhardt nodded. “I haven’t used any, so I’ll use them all now. Lysithea?”

”Y-Yes?” She knelt down beside them. 

“Are you able to pass magic to Marianne to enhance her magic?”

“I guess I can try.” Lysithea clasped her hands over Marianne’s. She looked around. “Is there anyone else we can get energy from?”

”I’m a Mortal Savant, take mine,” Catherine quickly said, grabbing Linhardt’s hands.

”Let me help too,” Hapi said, dismounting Timo and running over.

”I wish I could help, but I never studied magic at the Academy,” Hilda said, rubbing Matilda’s neck comfortingly.

”I am a Dark Knight, so maybe my magic will help?” Lorenz asked, dismounting Jakob.

”If you think it will,” Claude muttered.

”Please Goddess, please allow us to save Lady Rhea,” Ignatz prayed aloud.

”Lady Rhea looks like she’s lost a lot of blood,” Raphael said, rubbing at his nape. “Do you think she’ll feel better if she gets more blood?”

”I’d give her mine, but I have a different Crest than hers,” Balthus said. “She should get blood with a matching Crest, right?”

”That might not be a problem though, since she gave Jeralt blood without issue,” Claude said.

”She did?!” Leonie said excitedly.

”But Jeralt didn’t have a Crest before that, did he?” Hilda wondered out loud.

”...We probably shouldn’t be having this conversation,” Claude said after a moment, though he was grinning.

”Yeah, you’re probably right,” Hilda responded with her own grin.

”What Crest does Lady Rhea have though?” Leonie asked. “Jeralt inherited her Crest, right? He didn’t use his Crest power in combat, but I know he had it!”

”The Crest of Seiros,” Cyril supplied. “Who else do we know that has that Crest?”

“Edelgard,” Hilda said grimly.

”Yikes,” Balthus said worriedly. “Well, that’s that for the blood I guess.”

“ _Please_ do not talk like this!” Cyril hollered at them. “Lady Rhea needs our support!”

”He has a point,” Claude said. “Let’s...leave this to to Linhardt and Marianne and offer moral support.”

“Please hurry,” Seteth begged them.

“Ready?” Linhardt asked Marianne. Catherine and Hapi were clasping his hands.

”Ready,” Marianne said. Lysithea and Lorenz were clasping hers. “ _H...Heal_!” The power of the spell was immense, and consumed all of them.

” _Heal_!” Linhardt shouted. The power of his spell was even greater, filling the area with white light.

” _Heal_!”

” _Heal_!”

“ _Heal_!” Marianne looked to Linhardt once the spell finished. “T-That was my last spell!”

“Everyone, grab my hands,” Linhardt said. They complied and Linhardt squeezed his eyes shut. “ _Heal_!”

Linhardt used all of his remaining _Heal_ spells with the combined powers of seven spellcasters. Claude could not see them from his position due to the power they were using, but he knew that if this level of healing magic could not save Rhea, then nothing would.

_I don’t condone her actions, but I don’t want her to die. She doesn’t deserve it._

Finally, the blinding light faded and the seven fell back away from Rhea, clearly looking fatigue from the amount of magic that was used. Claude steered Gideon closer, and he saw Seteth pick Rhea up into his arms again. He saw that Rhea was still unmoving, but her complexion was considerably better. “Good job, everyone,” he said as he dismounted Gideon. He fished into his satchel and pulled out all of the healing potions that he had. “Here Marianne, you earned this.” He gave her a Concoction. “And one for you, Lysithea.” He gave her a Concoction. “And for you, Lorenz.” He gave him a Vulnerary. Lorenz was visibly annoyed to get a weaker potion, but said nothing as he drank it.

”Rhea!” Seteth shouted, and Claude turned. He saw Rhea stirring in his arms, and Catherine crawled over to her as she drank her own Concoction. “Lady Rhea!”

Claude tossed Linhardt his last Concoction and knelt at Rhea’s head. He watched Rhea’s brow furrowed before she slowly opened her eyes. Her gaze was glazed, and she moaned softly, but she was alive. 

“Lady Rhea!” Cyril slammed into Claude in his excitement to see her. “Lady Rhea, you’re alive!

Rhea looked confused for a moment, looking at the faces around them, before her eyes focused on Seteth. After a moment she smiled at him. “It is done.”

”It is done?” Seteth echoed, his tone both relieved and anguished.

Rhea nodded slowly. “Nemesis is gone.”

* * *

Dark, dusty smoke rose slowly into the air from the ashes of what remained of Shambhala. The underground, technologically advanced city was no more. Claude was surprised by the height of the sun in the sky, though. He had expected the time to be dusk, but yet it appeared to still be the afternoon.

_I underestimated how long this would take us._

He glanced towards Rhea’s position. The hero of legend herself still looked half-conscious and fatigued, swaying slightly in Whitasu’s saddle. But she was alive, and her lips moved in conversation with Seteth. Both Cyril and Catherine were watching her with worry in their eyes, and Catherine kept her hand on Rhea’s thigh as though she were trying to steady her.

”Well,” Claude said, breaking the prolonged silence in the group. “That certainly went a lot better than expected.”

”Indeed it did,” Lorenz agreed briskly. “We stopped Those Who Slither in the Dark and prevented Nemesis’s resurrection.” He scoffed softly and shook his head. “Had he resurrected, the chaos he would have brought would have been unimaginable. He would surely led an genocidal campaign against us all, and many more people would have died.” He casually brushed his hair out of his face. “My father did not personally participate in the war, but I know that he would have risen to the occasion to fight Nemesis.”

”Oh, don’t be ridiculous,” Hilda said, moving to stand beside Claude. “Had your father faced Nemesis in battle, he would’ve turned tail and ran to save himself! My brother on the other hand would’ve faced Nemesis down without hesitation!”

Lorenz flushed with embarrassment, but he remained quiet instead of challenging Hilda’s insult to his father. Claude knew that it was because she was right, and Lorenz knew it as well. “Well, I’m sure Holst will be _very_ disappointed to hear he missed out on such an epic battle.”

”Yeah, because I’m gonna gloat about it to him!” Balthus boomed in agreement, causing several to laugh. 

“That was _amazing_!” Raphael cheered, pumping his fists. “The greatest fight I’ve ever participated in! Hey, did we bring food? I’m starving!”

”I’m glad that this threat is gone,” Ignatz said softly. “A-And I’m certain that Professor Byleth and Dimitri were successful in Enbarr...” he wore an expression of worry though, despite his words.

”I’m...certain, too,” Marianne said quietly, though she also looked worried.

”It’s honestly really sweet how much you’re both worried about your betroths,” Hilda teased them. 

”Claude, you we ought to send word to Enbarr that we were successful,” Leonie said suddenly, hurrying over to him. “I can go if you need me to.”

”Oh, that’s not necessary,” Claude said, shrugging. “Before we entered Shambhala I sent a messenger pigeon to Enbarr of our success.”

”EH?!” Most everyone shouted. Except for Hilda.

”You told the Professor that we won _before_ we invaded the city?!” Seteth snapped.

”Of course I did. Teach and Dimitri are probably wrapping up business right as we speak in Enbarr. If I sent the pigeon now then it would’ve arrived after they made it back to Garreg Mach! By sending it before the battle, it ensured that our message arrived right when they were victorious.”

”But what if we _hadn’t_ been victorious?!” Catherine snapped. “What if we needed reinforcements?! They wouldn’t have known to send them!”

”Even if they sent necessary reinforcements, we would’ve been dead before they arrived,” Claude pointed out. “Besides, I knew that we were going to win, so it’s not a big deal.”

”You really need to think before you act Claude!” Lysithea snapped at him. Behind her, Linhardt was kneeling on the ground trying to sort through the books he had taken with his battalion.

”Hey, it worked out didn’t it?”

”Everyone.” Seteth walked with Whitasu towards them with Rhea. He looked even more stressed despite their success, but he was wearing a rare smile. “I am all of your debts. Thank you for your hard work today.”

”Thank you...all of you,” Rhea said softly.

Claude shrugged. “This is going to benefit me a _lot_ in the long run, so I was happy to help. Dimitri and Teach secured the end of the war, and we saved the world. Today was a win.”

”Oi!” Claude looked over his shoulder and grinned as he Nader and an army of Almyran warriors following behind him. Nader was waving and grinning. “I’ve missed you!”

“I appreciate th—” Claude began.

”My Queen!” Nader swept into a full kneel before Hilda. All of the Almyran soldiers followed suit before her, not seeming to notice their future king standing close by. “I regret not seeing more of your prowess in battle!”

”Always a flatterer, aren’t you?” Hilda laughed.

”You’re lucky you didn’t,” Cyril scoffed, shaking his head. “She took on three soldiers and painted the walls with their blood.”

”That—is _amazing_!” Nader shouted. Claude thought he saw sparkles in his eyes as he stood up and grabbed Hilda’s hands. “Must you stay behind? Can’t you come back with us?”

”Okay, that’s enough,” Claude said, gently pushing him away from Hilda. “You’re just in time for the end of the battle.”

“Hey, I’m punctual! I—” Nader’s voice broke off as he looked at Cyril. His brow lifted in confusion. “Hey. Do I know you?”

”Should you?” Cyril shot back.

“Hey, aren’t you the guy who got a draw against Holst in a drinking contest?!” Balthus exclaimed. He rushed forward and grabbed Nader’s hand. “I’ve been dying to meet you! I’m Balthus!”

”Balthus? Oh right, Holst mentioned you! Hey, why don’t we all go back to Holst’s place and get drunk before the cross the border?”

”Ye—”

”What about Coco, B?” Hapi called out behind him. Balthus winced, but shook his head at Nader. “Sorry, I’ll have to take a rain check on the drinking party. My lady fought in another battle today, so I wanna make sure she’s fine.”

Nader waved a dismissive hand. “Understood. You take care of your business, and then sometime we’ll have that party!”

”All right!”

Claude smiled at their enthusiasm, but he felt...just a twinge of bitterness. He turned around to face his companions. “I’ll tell you now,” he said. “I won’t be going back with you to Garreg Mach. I’m leaving right now to go home.”

A collective gasp overtook the group, and Claude avoided looking at Hilda. Lysithea rounded upon him, her gaze glaring but also shining with unshed tears. “Leaving?!”

”Leaving,” Claude told her. He looked back at his friends. “And this isn’t a temporary goodbye. I’m going home to Almyra and I’m staying there.”

”But...” Marianne’s voice trailed off as she looked towards Hilda.

”W-Will we see you again?” Ignatz asked him.

”Of course,” Claude reassured them. “Once the lot of you start having weddings, you better invite me. And when you have kids, but please don’t invite me to the birth—”

”Will you be accompanying Claude to Almyra Hilda?” Lorenz asked.

”No, I’m not,” Hilda told him, though without malice.

”Gosh Claude, I’m gonna miss you like crazy,” Raphael said mournfully. He sniffled, and large teardrops started spilling out of his eyes. Hapi passed him her handkerchief without a word.

”Aww, don’t cry Raphael,” Claude said, patting him on his massive shoulder comforting. Raphael only groaned in reply as he cried noisily into Hapi’s handkerchief. “If you keep crying like that, Lysithea’s going to start crying.”

”Claude, stop treating me like a child!” Lysithea shouted, though tears were now spilling down her cheeks. “You stupid—” she suddenly hiccuped on a sob and buried her face into her hands. “I hate you! I hate you for making me cry, you jerk!”

”There, there,” Claude said, pulling her into a hug.

”Claude,” Marianne said softly, sniffling quietly on her tears. “I...was so happy to see you again.” She smiled serenely at him. “I will pray to the Goddess that you only have success and happiness.”

”That’s very sweet of you, Marianne,” Claude told her sincerely. “I will pray that you have the same as well. Though I know I won’t have to worry about you.” _Not like before. I’m glad that Ferdinand has brought her so much joy..._

“Claude,” Ignatz said softly. He wasn’t crying but he held out a hand to him. “Thank you for being a good friend. I’m going to miss you.”

”I’ll miss you too, Ignatz.” Claude shook his hand and smiled. “You be a good father to your kid, okay?” Ignatz stiffened but Claude continued. “Petra always had a wild side, so your kid is going to see a parent who is grounded.”

“Claude.” Leonie ran over and gave him a quick hug, squishing Lysithea between them. “You take care of yourself, okay?”

”Thanks, Leonie. You take care of yourself too.” Claude accepted her hug, squishing Lysithea tighter between them. “Mmmph! Hrrmph!”

”Maybe you should let Lysithea go?” Linhardt casually asked them.

”Oh, right. Sorry, Lysithea.” Claude let both Leonie and Lysithea go, but he reached out and playfully pinched Lyisthea’s cheek. “Take care of yourself, okay?”

Lysithea swatted his hand away, but Claude pushed his handkerchief into her hands. She took a moment to wipe her face before glaring up at him. “...Thank you,” she grumbled. “Thank you for helping me get revenge.”

”Anything for my little Lysithea,” Claude laughed, ruffling her hair. She swatted at his hands and sputtered in outrage. Claude looked towards Linhardt, who was still looking through the books. “Good luck to you,” he said seriously. “If you ever need anything, just let me know.”

”Hmm,” Linhardt responded.

“Those books are still Church property,” Seteth reminded him.

”Claude.” Lorenz approached him, wearing a strained expression. He looked away briefly before looking back at him. “I just want to...I...I...”

”Apology accepted,” Claude told him smugly, smiling at him. Lorenz twitched violently, and looked positively furious, but otherwise said nothing else.

“It was nice seeing you again, Cyril,” Claude said to him. Cyril quickly looked away but he mumbled a very soft, “...You too.”

”Thank you for your help Claude,” Catherine said quickly. “But we should get moving and get Lady Rhea back to the Monastery.”

”That’s a good point,” Claude agreed. He awkwardly waved to Rhea, still remembering their last conversation. “I’m glad you’re okay, Rhea.”

Rhea nodded. “Thank you.”

Claude finally looked at Hilda, and was relieved to see that she wasn’t upset or tearing up. He took her by the hand and led her away from the others. Nader and the Almyran soldiers were following them, and Claude felt his chest ache sharply. They had been expecting this moment—this was a moment that _he_ had demanded happen—and he tried to maintain an air of calm as they stopped alone. Claude turned to face Hilda and waved Nader off. Nader nodded his understanding, but he winked at Hilda as he led the soldiers away.

”Hilda—” Claude began, his tone low.

”I understand,” she interrupted, nodding quickly. “You have to go now. This is our goodbye.” She smiled at him though. “I got two exciting moons with you though, more than what I expected.”

”...Yeah.” He reached up and gently brushed his knuckles against her cheek. “I said this before, but I want you to be prepared for this. I really don’t know how long it will take before I can turn my dream into a reality, but I won’t ever abandon you. I _will_ come for you, and when I do we’ll be together forever.”

Tears stung Hilda’s eyes, but she she blinked rapidly to clear them. “If you cheat on me—”

”I’ll never cheat on you,” Claude reassured. “Ever. There’s not a single woman in the entire world who could make me feel the way you make me feel.”

“Not a single woman?” Hilda asked, her tone suddenly turning playful. “So a man wouldn’t tempt you then?”

Claude choked on a laugh at hearing this, the tension dissipating. He pulled her close and their lips met. Hilda quickly encircled her arms around his neck and he lifted her up slightly. The kiss was soft and soothing, not desperate but still very bittersweet. Claude felt tears stinging his own eyes. He didn’t want the moment to end, and he didn’t want to leave. But he knew that it was necessary and thus kept himself calm.

It was Hilda who broke the kiss, but she didn’t pull away from him though and held her moth over his. “I love you,” she murmured.

”I love you, too.” They held gazes as their mouths remained pressed together. For a moment they were afraid to release each other. It was Claude who finally pulled away fully, and gently set her down. “We both have a lot of work ahead of us, but I know we can do it. I’ll become King, you’ll be my Queen, and we’ll open Almyra and Fódlan to the world.”

”I’ll work hard,” Hilda quickly promised him. “You know I hate hard work, but I want to be your Queen. I’ll do anything I can to be the best Queen for Almyra, and I’ll do anything I can to help you achieve your dream. Your dream is my dream, Khalid.”

Claude stared at her, smiling painfully. He almost couldn’t believe that this was the same woman who used to complain about even the minimal of chores or homework, but here she was vowing to work hard for his sake. “The world will never know what hit it when it meets us,” he promised her. 

“Of course,” Hilda agreed. “The two of us will be more than the world can handle.”

Claude laughed again. They shared another long kiss before they finally separated. “Goodbye, Hilda.”

”Goodbye, Khalid.”

Claude turned around to face away from her, though tears stung his eyes once more he shook them off and whistled for Gideon. “Let’s go home,” he told his wyvern. Gideon stared back at him with a look of...sadness?

_He’s probably going to miss Hilda—and Matilda—as much as me. But this how it must be._

”You ready to go, Kiddo?” Nader asked him when Claude flew over to them.

”I am,” Claude said. “Thank you all for everything you’ve done. Let’s go home now.”

The Almyran soldiers cheered, but Nader remained silent. When the cheers died down, he spoke. “Are you sure we can’t stop at—”

”No.”

* * *

Despite the urgency of needing to get Rhea back to Garreg Mach, Hilda remained behind to watch Claude and the Almyrans leave. She had spent the last two months with them on a ship to rescue Lady Rhea, and they were successful in their mission. Being around them reminded her of being with Holst and the soldiers of House Goneril. She felt like she was at home.

_It will be my home. Just not right now._

A couple of tears spilled down her cheeks but she quickly wiped them away. _No. Don’t get upset, Hilda. You knew that this was coming, and you accepted it. It’s been a hard journey, but you have a lot of wonderful memories. It will be enough until you can be with Khalid again._

”Hilda?” Marianne asked behind her. 

Hilda snapped a smile on her face and turned around to face the group. “Let’s hurry! If we’re quick enough, we can beat Dimitri and the Professor back to the Monastery!”

* * *

* * *

“...so what do you say, P—Your Grace?” Linhardt said in conclusion.

”All right, sure,” Byleth said, shrugging.

”Your Grace,” Seteth protested weakly. “Are you certain about this?”

“Linhardt wants those books for a good reason,” Byleth told him. “And Professor Hanneman—” she gestured to him standing to Linhardt’s right. “Has given Linhardt his backing. I see no point in denying him.”

Hanneman von Essar nodded enthusiastically. “You always have sound judgment, Your Grace.”

”But—” Seteth tried.

”Thank you, Your Grace,” Linhardt quickly interjected. Hanneman and him began to quickly gather the books piled on the table in front of him. “If you’ll both excuse us, I have important work to do.” 

“Your Grace, do you not want to check those books before he leaves with them?” Seteth asked when Linhardt and Hanneman left the room.

”I don’t need to. Linhardt needs them for a good cause.”

”A ‘good cause’?”

Byleth looked at him for a long moment before she sat down at her desk. “Seteth, have you ever wondered how Lysithea and Edelgard have two Crests?”

Seteth stared back at her. After a moment he nodded stiffly. “Understood.”

The silence lingered in the office for a few moments before Seteth turned back towards the door. “Your Grace?”

”Yes?”

”Linhardt had mentioned that he had experimented with magic with Lysithea and Hanneman the night before our march. I can...understand what that experiment was now, however he said that it was a failure but that the magic produced from that experiment may have—distributed between the three of them.”

”Distributed?”

”Linhardt and Lysithea had enhanced abilities in our march to Shambhala,” Seteth clarified. “Lysithea was able to destroy the remnants of Shambhala herself after Lady Rhea’s destruction. Linhardt’s healing spells primarily saved Lady Rhea in the aftermath.”

”I see.”

”So...” Seteth rubbed at his nape awkwardly. “Did you see any enhancements in Hannemen’s abilities during your siege on Enbarr?”

Byleth thought about it for a moment before shrugging. “I cannot say. The campaign was very chaotic.”

”I wonder then what happened to Hanneman’s magical surge, if it did not enhance his abilities?”

Byleth shook her head and looked down at her paperwork. “I’m sure we’ll find out in due time...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe it’s just me, but when I played this map in Verdant Wind the Viskam focused their attacks exclusively on Claude and Hilda and no one else. Playing this map on Silver Snow the Viskam did not single out specific units for me.
> 
> Truthfully in-game, I’ve gotten Linhardt to Master Class in all of my playthroughs but in my headcanon I feel like Linhardt would just lose interest in advancing his class because he prefers his research to combat and hates killing. So for narrative sake in this fan fiction universe he gets as far as Dark Bishop and doesn’t bother trying to promote himself anymore.
> 
> As you may have guessed with Hapi’s horse, I took the name Timo from her ancestor Timotheos. Naturally Cyril’s wyvern, Siegbert, shares the same name as the character from Fire Emblem Fates, with whom they also share the same Japanese voice actor (Kengo Kawanishi).
> 
> And I realized I forgot to explain the names of Claude and Hilda’s wyverns in Future Love of My Life, so I’ll explain it here. Gideon was the first name that came to mind when I thought of Claude’s wyvern, so that’s the name I went with. I think Gideon is a badass name anyways so I thought it fit Claude. Hilda’s wyvern Matilda is a variation of the name Hilda. So yeah, Claude thought the name was funny because Hilda named her wyvern after herself LOL.


End file.
